Girl Got Game
by Liebesbrief
Summary: FIN. Lily was not prepared to go to Hogwarts to live a life of gender bending and cross dressing just in order to be able to play a serious game of Quidditch. But that cute chaser James Potter just might make up for all of it...if he weren't such a jerk.
1. How Far is too Far?

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Posted On:** 29 August 2004  
**Re-Vamped:** March 2006  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter or any related characters 'cause they all belong to the Literature goddess name Joanne Rowling T.T - The storyline isn't even mine…It belongs to the great Shizuru Seino and her manga series, "Girl Got Game". Any Quidditch references are most likely used from my copy of 'Quidditch through the Ages'. So you see how little I own? T.T

**Summary:** How far is Lily's uncle going to push her into being a Quidditch star? Is moving to another country and posing as a boy _really_ necessary? All Lily wanted was a regular life as teenager when she left Beauxbatons after the death of her parents and disownment from her sister. She _really_ wasn't prepared to go to a new school (even if their Quidditch teams _are_ totally fab), or live in a horrible lie involving entirely around some serious gender bending and cross dressing. What a life for poor Lily...but hey, that cute chaser James Potter just might make up for all of it…if only he weren't such a jerk.

**Chapter 1  
****"How Far is too Far?"**

**:-:**

Die, you bastard! _Die, die, DIE!_

My fist slammed around my nightstand until the screaming alarm clock was knocked to the floor. Wretched thing; deserved to burn and die, I say.

I groaned into my pillow. I am a firm believer that there is no form of life _whatsoever _before eleven o'clock on weekends. One thing was for sure; I was never ever, _EVER,_ getting out of my nice, warm, cosy, comfy—Ooh!_ I smell croissants!_

I threw off the covers, leapt over the fallen alarm clock, and ran down the stairs to the kitchens where there was sure to be some delicious bakery goods. Personally, I was genuinely touched that my uncle would go out of his way to make me feel better about going to a new school.

My uncle John is most possibly the most uber-cool person to ever walk the face of the earth.

All right, maybe not the earth's _entire_ circumference. Possibly just Britain. Yeah, that sounds about right.

I had moved in with John after my parents were killed the following week I returned to school after the Christmas holidays in a Death Eater raid near my hometown Arques, France. I hadn't seen my sister Petunia since their funerals but I know that she also left France in favour of England to attend a university and I'm almost certain she's engaged now. We don't keep in touch and only a DNA test could prove our relation.

The onslaught of these thoughts was almost enough to drive me back into my new room like I had ever since I returned from school last May. I was so lucky that John had been so wonderful to me.

I had previously attended _Beauxbatons Académie de Sorciers pour les Jeunes Filles _back in France when I had lived with my parents and my sister, Petunia.

Mum was born and raised and France, and my parents met when my dad was just visiting from England over break at a French university. Needless to say, it was years before they could date due to the language barrier and is also why I grew up knowing both English and French. Therefore no one in all of England would assume that I had lived nearly half of my life in France and vise-versa.

Both of my parents were not magical like me and it's the same reason why they were killed.

After they died, I was left to finish up my fifth year at Beauxbatons before I went moved back to Britain with my godfather and my father's half-brother, John. He is the only one in the entire Evans family to possess any sort of magical powers. John just turned twenty-eight in June, but I swear he hasn't aged a mental day since he was eighteen. He's more like a cool older cousin and not a croony uncle. Not to mention he's a humorous, enjoyable person, and a Quidditch fanatic! Just like me!

I have always, and I repeat, ALWAYS loved Quidditch. Uncle John had always hoped that I would be a witch so that he would have someone to teach the rules of the game to.

Huzzah! He got his wish on the seventeenth of May in 1970, when I got my acceptance letter to the best boarding school for witchcraft in all of France.

The next day was, conveniently, the Quidditch semi-finals and John kidnapped me from my room, (well, he left my folks a note), and took me to see the Greek Griffins verses the Scottish Krakens.

But even before that, uncle John would tell me stories about a magical sport that I never would have figured was actually derived from reality.

My uncle and I attended _every _seasonal game from there on out, and he was even able to wrangle two World Cup tickets one year.

As much as I loved the sport, I was not able to convince our Beauxbatons headmistress to organize school teams. It was the first thing I had looked into when I got there. The only thing they had was a Quidditch Club for the few and the proudly dedicated girls who truly wanted to play. We had mock games and practiced playing positions, and even tried to organize games within our small group, but it didn't quite work out…I was briefly suspended from the club when I was told I was being "too aggressive" by some stupid professor.

My best position is most _definitely_ lead chaser, but I make a pretty good beater if I may say so.

Getting back on track, I ran down the stairs and into the kitchen to see that Jean had indeed bought—Merlin knew he can't cook—a batch of croissants that he was currently pulling out of the oven, (for good effect, I would assume).

"'Morning, Lily," he said happily.

"_Bonjour, mon oncle!" _I answered, plucking a croissant off the tray.

"You're in England, Lily love, let's use English please. Or at least Spanish; _that_ one I know marginally well." John laughed and put the rest of the batch on a cooling rack.

"Good morning, Mr. Picky-pants." I said again, trying to get a rise out of him. He's usually so passive (sans any Quidditch games and after-parties), so it's fun trying to push his buttons.

I took a seat at the table where John had elaborately given me a bowl of cereal with banana's at the bottom—I could see them poking up through the milk—two slices of toast, and a tall glass of orange juice.

On any other occasion, I would have assumed that he wanted something, or at least tell me some bad news, but I figured that he didn't want me to be nervous for school in the upcoming week. I took a bite of the croissant and sat down to eat the rest of my breakfast.

"Any good?" John asked me.

"Yeah," I swallowed, "Which bakery did you get this batch from?"

Uncle John looked highly affronted.

"I beg your pardon, young lady!" he said putting a hand to his chest as if insulted. "I've been up since the crack of _dawn _slaving over a hot oven and you deny me any form of _credit?_"

I rolled my eyes. Honestly, he think that _just because _I've lived in France for most of my life that he can just stereotype us all into liking croissants.

…yum.

"You've finished all of your course requirements for Hogwarts?"

I frowned at the name, but nodded.

"Seriously, John," I said, "You mean to tell me that this school you went to, a school called HOG_—WARTS _is supposed to be the best school in all of _Europe?_"

"It's only been the best school for a thousand years, Lily!" he said, obviously. "Don't be such a ninny,"

Yup, that's me: Lily Evans, world's greatest ninny.

Personally, I'm not crazy about transferring to another school in another country just for my sixth and seventh year. I miss France and I miss Beauxbatons.

Oh, and I supposed I miss Charlotte as well. Although, she probably would have shot me if she caught me calling her "Charlotte"…

"_Call me…Charlie_," she had said one evening at dinner back in second year, (in French of course, because that was the only language the school taught in).

"_Charlie_," I repeated, dumfounded.

"_Yes, it sounds so_…" she searched for the right word.

"_Like the modern American man?_"

She really didn't need to elbow me.

"_I was going to say _rebellious_,_" she snapped.

"_Right_," I shrugged, "_Suit yourself_,"

Of course, I stopped teasing her when she tried to hex my hair into strangling me…

But I'm really going to miss playing Quidditch with her and John on the weekends. I must've looked depressed or something as my head slumped down dejectedly so I tried to think about my new school uniform from Diagon Alley that was due to arrive that morning. Uncle Jean had already gotten me my schoolbooks at the end of May when I had moved.

"Just four more days until school." John cut into my thoughts, "Are you excited?" He turned on the coffee pot and began to peel a banana.

I shrugged as I finished the croissant and moved on to my cereal.

"What're you looking forward to the most?" he asked.

Hm…there were no boys at Beauxbatons…the uniforms had _not_ appeared in _Witch Weekly_'s most admirable school-wear, unlike the Hogwart's female uniforms.

"Boys, and pretty uniforms," I said dopily.

John looked slightly putout. "So…are you…do you think you'll enjoy their Quidditch program? I've only heard good things about their teams." He leaned against the counter while his coffee finished.

Oh, yeah, Quidditch.

Boys and pretty skirts kind of _do_ kind of pale in comparison. Good gravy, what was I thinking? It was too bloody early in the morning to be thinking properly, I reasoned.

"I'm really excited to play on an actual team," I said, quickly amending, but I just _couldn't _help adding: "But the school has _the cutest _uniforms for the girls!" It was my inner anti-tomboy teenage pre-woman part of me that made me say it! (She threatened to clobber me with her stilettos…!)

"The skirts are so adorable! And they really make the colour black work nicely for them! I think the Ravenclaw house has the nicest colours to go with black…and Gryffindor's and Slytherin's are nice too…I'm not so sure about Hufflepuff's though…."

Dear lord, who gave my mouth a mind of its own?

"Yes well—" he coughed politely "—It's not all about the clothes, dear, don't forget about _Quidditch_—"

I nodded furiously until a flutter of feathers went by his head.

I gasped loudly.

"It's here! It's here! It's here!"

Stupid anti-inner tomboy!

I ran to take the one parcel from the five screeching owls, and the letter and opened the heavy parchment first.

I could've sworn I heard Jean say, "This should be interesting…" but I shrugged it off.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL  
_of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY_

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore  
_(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf Warlock,  
__Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. Of Wizards)_

Wow, bragging much?

_Dear Mr. Evans,_

Mister? Must have been a misprint…

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry._

_Term begins on September 1__st__. Your uncle has already owled us in reply and you are scheduled to meet in my office on first floor upon arrival to find your dorm._

_Your uncle also informed us that you have most of the requirements and necessities needed for your sixth year such as your cauldron, potion vials, gloves, telescope, etc. etc… for your lessons as well as his full permission to attend Hogsmeade on the _designated _weekends._

_Please inform your uncle that you will not be excused from classes or permitted off-grounds to attend seasonal Quidditch games._

WHAT? The devil woman!

"Why the hell not?" roared John from behind me.

I jumped; I didn't realise he had been reading over my shoulder.

_We normally do not allow __transfers, but under the circumstances and special approval given from Professor Albus Dumbledore we extend an official welcome to you from Hogwarts._

_Yours sincerely,_

Minerva McGonagall  
_Deputy Headmistress._

Uncle John was back over near the coffee pot, mumbling obscenities about the McGonagall woman.

"Well she sounded stiff…and they even called me a boy!" I waved my hands around, pointing to the paper. "Honestly! _Pas au cas où ils traiter leurs nouveaux étudiants un peu plus gentils? Comment grossier!"_ Can't they treat their new students a little bit nicer? Rude much? I huffed.

Yes, _huffed._

"Er—Lily? Why don't you open the two packages…" John poured that long awaited caffeine, also known as coffee, and I could've sworn I heard his teeth chattering nervously against the mug.

Being just a _little _bit greedy, I ripped open the first package to see nearly fifteen pounds of books. No wonder they needed extra owls. I had ordered some extra books for background references about the school and such that I wanted to have just in case. I neatly put them aside on the table and moved to my second parcel.

The uniforms had _better _make up for my having to move across the continent, leaving my home, my friends, Beauxbatons, and go to a school who's named after a _pig's skin condition._

I pulled out a long, handsome black robe that had silver fastenings and folded it on the table.

Sooo pretty!

I continued to pull out the other work robes and the winter cloak, the casual everyday black hat with the Hogwarts school crest on it, the vests that looked a little to masculine for my lean (and tragically _flat_) feminine physique…and the tie mandatory for both genders, though mine lacked any house colours.

I was getting just a bit frantic when I couldn't find my set of skirts that I could use to—heehee—show off my legs.

Oh, if only my parents could see me now…

…they would be completely furious THAT THEY SENT ME TROUSERS INSTEAD!

You can imagine my surprise when I pulled out several pairs of gray coloured slacks when I had been eagerly anticipating my skirt that had been voted No.1 in female school uniforms by _Witch Weekly_'s readers.

Uncle John had backed away slowly from my frozen figure standing at the table.

"Do you know something about this?" I said with such an amount of deadly calmness that I even scared myself as I turned on him. "Where's my _skirt?_" I said dangerously, walking over towards John. "Is this some kind of sick _joke_?"

"O-of course not, love," he gulped.

"Then did I _miss something?" _I yelled.

"Uh…now Lily…" my uncle faltered. "Y-You re-re-remember when we talked last spring a-about you wanting to play Quidditch this year?" He was backed into a wall cowering in fear of me. _Me!_ Cool and calm Lily who was, quite possibly, going to be sent to Azkaban for violent manslaughter over a _skirt! _"W-well—uh—Hogwarts isn't just known for th-the cute girls' uniforms…it's also has some of the best Quidditch s-school teams in all of Britain…"

"_I know…_That's why we _agreed_ on Hogwarts, _remember?_" I snipped as I began to close in on him.

"Well, yes…B-but, they didn't have enough girls that wanted to play f-f-for each house to have a team…see? S-so they had to r-r-reject th-the idea…"

"So what are you saying?" I felt my eyes narrow dangerously.

_Surely _Jean wouldn't have gone and done something stupid, right?

"Uh—well you know how I wanted to play in the _IQA_, but they said I was to old…" Oh yeah, I knew _all _about it and rolled my eyes. Uncle John was a great Quidditch player, but had terrible asthma, not to mention a knee that never really healed from a childhood incident. I knew he always dreamed of play in the _International Quidditch Association _as a beater, and was more broken up about not being able to play than being dumped by his long-time girlfriend.

But what the hell did this have to do with me?

"Well…here's your chance to live my dream!" He said happily and expected that I would react the same.

I almost swallowed my own tongue.

"Are you crazy, you stupid, _stupid old man?_" I yelled.

"Well—I…uh…"

"First, above all, I am a GIRL She pointed to herself. "This uniform—" I grabbed it off the table and waved it around wildly, "—is for _UN GARÇON!" _I shoved the pants in his face for him to see, just in case he was nearsighted.

Stupid...crazy…UGH.

"It's okay!" said John. "I took care of everything! I forged your paperwork—"

"WAIT. YOU_ WHAT?"_

"Oh, don't worry! I'll send you some casual 'guy' stuff for you to wear on the weekends. I've thought of everything, so no need to be concerned!"

It finally hit me then. "YOU WANT ME TO PRETEND TO BE A _BOY?_"

John just kept talking, "You'll be sleeping with the guys—" Holy cheese crackers, what kind of uncle _encouraged _this? "—Oh! And your name is 'Li'."

"_LI?_" I said, voice cracking.

"Yup! I think in Chinese it means 'strength'…or 'pear'; I can't remember which at the moment," he trailed off thoughtfully. "It'll be a great conversation starter and a way for you to meet new friends!"

I looked at uncle John's eyes as they became unfocused as he reflected on his past.

Admittedly, I saw the sad, pathetic look of disappointment that radiated off his face, and as much as I was furious with him at the time, I couldn't bear the thought of him in a depression-like state of mind.

I mean, _so what _he wanted me to pretend to be a boy during my more vital years and miss out on important social developments? _So what _I will never be able to go on a first date until I was eighteen? _So what _if I'll never have my first kiss? So—_freakin'­—_what?

Big deal, right? I mean, the man _did _take me in after my parents were killed.

Oh, god, I think I'm going to cry.

I was going to need one _hell_ of a lot of 'li' if I was going to do this right. I loved my uncle to bits and pieces, and I loved Quidditch, too….But this was too much to ask a teenager who just lost her parents a couple months back. I have dreams, too!

And I wanted a boyfriend, damn it!

Outwardly, I only sighed. It just didn't seem fair not to have a girl's Quidditch team. Why was everything always centred on the _men _anyways? _Uuugh, _behind every man there is a better woman, I say. I knew John wanted me to do it…and I really did want to play…besides, I could date when I was out of school, right? And no one would recognise me, right?

_Right?_

Uncle John must've noticed my inward brooding and grinned broadly. "Great! Let's go get your hair cut!"

Hold the phone.

_WHAAAAAAT?_

"_WHAAAAAT?"_

Just outside the house, the birds that were peacefully resting on their perches took off into the sky.

* * *

Stupid barber!

He should be thankful that all I did was _just _bite him! Putting that shaving thing right near my head, _honestly_…

There had been a _long _debate on just how to cut my hair. John wanted me to just shave it off "marine style" or whatever, and I said that it looked _just fine, _thankyouverymuch.

He eventually pulled me aside and said that all I needed to do was cast a small charm on it over the summer when I got home for the holidays.

Reluctantly, _very _reluctantly, I agreed.

Actually, Jean promised to by me an owl if I cooperated, so…

…yeah, my opinion is (obviously) easily swayed.

I sighed when I looked in the mirror. My hair was cut razor style, and looked shaggy, short, and, well, _bloke-ish._ It barely reached the bottom of my earlobe for goodness sake!

Jean had said I could keep my fourteen inches of heart-red hair after he apparated us home. The hair that had been previously attached to my head lay limply on my dresser.

"Oh bugger and bollocks,"

Trying to take my mind of my sudden loss of hair, I went to the closet and pulled out my school trunk. I ran my fingers over the thick rough cover and leather straps before pulling it open.

I slowly and sluggishly began to fold and pack the robes, sweaters, and vests hanging in my closet, leaving out all girly shirts and form-fitting jeans.

It was strange really, the thought of posing as a boy at a new school hardly bothered me anymore. I didn't know anyone to really care to impress them, I supposed. It was like a grown-up version of playing pretend. The only thing I _did _know was Quidditch and Merlin knows what I'd do for the love of a sport.

I put all but two books in there as well. I wanted to read the extra books the school had given me, _Hogwarts: A History _so I would understand the school's origins, and _Charm Your Life_, a book about strange and yet oddly useful charms.

Figuring that I had better write to Charlie and tell her that I would try to visit over Christmas break, I went to my desk and pulled out some old Beauxbatons stationary and quickly scribbled out a note.

I was finishing the last line—_don't do anything seriously stupid with out me—_when I heard my name being called.

"Lily! Dinner in five!" my uncle called from down the stairs.

Sealing the letter quickly, I threw a stamp on it before briskly walking down the stairs and down to the end of her driveway to put the letter in the mailbox. I was really beginning to want that owl; I hated using Charlie's or one of the schools. I also decided that it would be best not to tell Charlie the favour I was doing my uncle, but just talked about my break and said that I missed her.

As I walked back into the house, it suddenly hit me what I was doing. I was going to pretend to be a _boy _for the next _ten months_.

Karma seriously had better be giving me bonus points for all of this.

**:-****:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

Yeaup, this is why getting the next chapter up took so long -_-;

All of the previous ones just _had _to be re-edited because I am just so OCD on some things.

R/R for me!


	2. So Much to Ask

"**Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Update On: **17 September 2004  
**Re-Vamped On: **March 2006  
**Chapter Two**  
**"So Much to Ask"  
**

**:-****:**

By the first of September rolled around, I was depressed.

Super depressed. I mean, uncle John even had to buy me a super-sized ice cream sundae before we got to King's Cross Train Station.

The car ride wasn't long, two hours at most. I had my legs sprawled all over the back seat and leaned against the window as fog rolled through the streets and raindrops fell against the window's surface. It rained for the entire car ride; it was like foreshadowing.

And I _really _don't like foreshadowing. It never bodes well in all of the stories. Usually the character dies, or gets diagnosed with terminal cancer or something.

At the very thought, I snuggled up into my navy blue sweatshirt that was at least three sizes to big for me, ("It looks more masculine," John assured me, "And it, um, covers more of…of, erm, that is to say, it doesn't make your…um, y'know, more _noticeable_,").

As I stepped out of the car and stretched my limbs, I checked my new—and masculine, might I add—watch that Jean had gotten me.

It read ten-thirty in the morning, just thirty minutes before I had to be at the platform. John came around from the other side of the car and looked despairingly at his ex-niece—a.k.a. ME.

I gave my best wide-eyed innocence look.

"Look, Lily," he said, holding both my shoulders, "I'm sorry—"

Sorry? _Now _of all times he's sorry? Where the hell was this attitude _before _I had fourteen inches of hair cut off?

"—but you know that I want the best for you. Sometimes we have to make sacrifices for the things we love—like Quidditch. And who knows? Maybe times will change by the time you graduate,"

"Hmm," I shrugged and apparently making him feel guilty.

"Oh, come now, Lily!" he rolled his head a bit and shut his eyes. "Don't give me that look! You're going to love this school! And the Quidditch program is _incredible!_ You're going to love it there! I know I did. Besides, now you won't be distracted!"

I groaned again pathetically as he hugged me.

"Lily," he said quietly, still holding me, "If you don't want do this..." he sighed, "You don't have to."

Tempting, tempting...

"No, John. I _want_ to do this. I _want _to play Quidditch. And I'll kick arse at it, too." I teased lightly, pulling back.

A wave of saddness, and perhaps envy, passed over John's eyes. "_How bitter a thing it is to look into happiness through another man's eyes_." He quoted to me.

I recognised the line from a performance I had seen one summer when I was at the Globe Theatre with my family. It's a quote from _As You Like It _which, ironically, is a story about a girl dressing up as a boy to escape persecution.

"Come on, I'll carry your trunk." He only carried it for about ten paces before he glanced at a rather large clock on the wall. "Oh _bollocks! _Is it half past ten, already?" he dropped my trunk, narrowly missing my toe, might I add. "I've got to be at work by one o'clock!"

"But I don't know where—!" I started.

"Oh, wait a second," he dug around in his coat hastily for a moment before pulling out an envelope. "Here's a bit of pocket money and your train ticket; it'll tell you everything you need to know. I'll get you that owl I promised you sometime next week. Must dash, bye _Li!_" and off he went…

Um, okay, thanks John. You know how much I love being in some foreign train station, all alone, having no idea as to where the _hell_ I'm going.

Wait a second; did he just call me—? Oh, right…my "name"…

Oh my giddy aunt, I didn't even know where this pig-pimple place _was!_

With a defeated sigh, I opened the envelope that held several British Wizard coins for food, snacks, and drinks, plus a thick white and red coloured ticket that read:

**HOGWARTS**

Platform 9 ¾

1 September 1976

_Departure Time:_ 11:00 A.M.

_Arrival Time:_ 6:00 P.M.

Enjoy your ride!

Hold the phone.

Platform _nine and three quarters?_

I get it! This whole thing was a set up! Ha ha! Good one, John! I never knew you had it in you! I knew you really wouldn't do something this _stupid!_

Laughing out loud at my revelation, I turned to the truck only to see my dear old uncle John drive through the rain and into the fog.

Damn, people were staring at me.

I looked to the ticket again; Platform nine and three quarters, indeed. How charming. I let out this feral growl-like rumble before snapping to myself in a slur of angry French, "_How the bloody hell am I supposed to get on the damn train?"_

Turn away people! Stop staring at me! I am _not _some random crazy gi—_boy, _(excuse me) who shouts our random bouts of French, thank you!

I went into my huffy mode again and I planned to reach down for my trunk and drag it around for a while until I could come up with an idea. Before I could do so, I felt some one gently tap me on the back.

My immediate thoughts: OMYGOD! RAPIST! MURDERER! CHILD MOLESTER! SWEET MERLIN, SAVE ME!

Luckily, when I oh-so-gracefully (not) whipped around, I saw a friendly, yet tired, face with a head full of sandy coloured hair, cut similarly like mine.

Well, look at me; Lily Evans, trendsetter extraordinaire.

"_Excuse me," _A French speaker? I thought excitedly, "_but I couldn't not help but noticing that you might need help. Are you in need of any assistance?" _He smiled ever so slightly, but it was just enough to light up his amber eyes.

Good grief, he looks like he should be on a poster board somewhere…

…like in my _room._

Yes, so while my heart was melting right then and there, I didn't noticed I was ogling. Only when I realised that he was waiting for an answer did I snap back into reality.

'Yes, of course I'll marry you and have your babies!'

Of course, I didn't _really _say that, but I wondered if he only spoke French.

"_Uh...yes, can you tell me where I can find platform nine and three quarters? Please?"_ I said. Personally, I half expected him to give me a funny look for asking about such an absurd and ludicrous sounding question.

Or say, 'I love you, Lily Evans, you sexy beast, you'…or something.

The boy took a moment to study me carefully before, surprisingly, nodding and answering, _"Yes, would you like me to show you?"_

And we shall tell our grandchildren; 'Our first date took place at a train station!'

I let go of the breath that I had been holding and sighed in relief. I nodded in response and followed the nameless boy through the throngs of people. The boy spoke French so fluently and with no accent whatsoever that I could only guess that he was from some French speaking country.

Uber-cool.

"_Comment t'appelle-tu?_" What's your name? He turned and asked me.

I was just imagining what our children would look like for five or so seconds when I realised that I hadn't answered. I quickly said, "Oh! _C'est 'Li'_'' Truthfully, I said it with a bit of mild pride—for remembering my, um, "name", that is…

It looked like the boy was about to respond to me, ('I don't care if you have to spend the rest of your life pretending to be a man! I shall always love you!' but all in French, of course) before some who seemed to know him called out to him.

"Oy! Remus! What'cha doin'?"

We both turned around. Holy sweet Merlin! Why do all of the Brits have such dishy blokes running around in their train stations?

The voice came from a tall handsome _man_ with hair longer than most boys his age, but somehow, he _really _knew how to make it work for him. He was standing on top of his trunk with his hands cupped over his mouth to make the sound echo throughout the platform. People turned to stare at him, but seemed to overlook the disturbance that he caused because of the charm he seemed to unconsciously possess.

'I want to have your babies, too!'

I really should have my head examined by someone. Or learn how to talk to boys without turning into such a mess...

My mouth seemed to have slipped open without my knowledge and I quickly shut it the moment I noticed.

The boy, Remus as he appeared to be, recognized him and hollered back, "I'm just helping this guy out. Give me a moment, Sirius."

Sirius? Ha ha ha…that's just too funny.

Said Sirius nodded jumped off the trunk and Remus turned back to look at me.

This Remus guy knew English, too?

Super uber-cool!

"You're not French?" I looked at him surprised.

He gave me a funny look. Which I can totally understand. I mean, I _am _pretending to be a man for the love of Quidditch…

"You mean you're not?" said Remus.

We sort of just blinked at each other for a couple of seconds, both confused before we shared a common laugh.

"I'm sorry," I apologised unnecessarily, "I thought you only spoke French."

He laughed and shrugged his shoulders.

Sooo sexy…

"Is French or English your native language? You don't seem to have an accent in either." He began to walk towards his friends and I hoped that was an invitation for me to follow.

"I've lived in France all my life," I said, dragging my trunk along, "My mother was French, but my father was English so I picked up on both." I explained.

"Fascinating," he said, "Oh, I'm Remus Lupin, by the way," he held out his hand for me to shake. "Did you say your name was Li?" he asked once I had (slowly) let go of his hand.

"Uh…yeah."

"Interesting name, doesn't sound very French or English, though."

Eeerrrrrrrmmm….

I panicked and stuttered. "Uh—er, I, um, think it might be Chinese…"

"Chinese?"

"Yes, um, I think it means 'pear'…or something."

"Why would you have a—?"

"Reeeeeeeeeemuuuuuuuus! Your taking foreeeeeeeeeeverrr!" A voice called out. It was the one called Sirius and two other companions who had yet to be named accompanied him.

Good gravy they were the walking epitomes of stud muffins. Could I wrap them up and take them to go, _please?_ Curse you, uncle John!

They trotted up to Remus and me and that's when I got a good look at them. It seriously was just one gorgeous boy after another.

Christ on a cracker, I hoped I wasn't drooling.

At first I had met Remus, and thought he was a rapist/murderer/child molester, but he was pretty cool with this mysterious and gentle characteristic that I felt _quite _drawn to.

Then along came that dashing Sirius fellow (ha ha, that's the funniest name I've ever heard in a long time. And that includes all the French women named Fred!) and he had brought over two friends, one was shorter than all the rest with some baby fat left over but plenty of room to grow. The next boy made me pause and think for an extra moment.

He was just as tall as Sirius—they could practically pass as twins! — He had a _huge _mass of unruly black hair that made him look like he'd been recently electrocuted, bronze-rimmed glasses that framed his hazel eyes that seemed just a little too cold, and just a little too dim.

I knew that look.

Heartbreak.

It's the same look Jean had after he had been rejected from the _IQA. _And maybe even after Donna had broken up with him after three years. I personally think he was more broken up about the _IQA_.

He didn't smile like the others and stared down at me.

I looked away as Remus spoke up for me, "This is Li, he's a wizard—no worries," he explained to the less informed, "Li, this is Sirius, Peter, and James—we're wizards too." He pointed to each of the correspondent people. They each responded to their name by either a nod or a wave of their hand.

Sexy No. 1, Uber-Sexy No. 2, Semi-Sexy No.3, and Mr. Heartbroken—got it.

However, out loud I asked, "How'd you know I was a wizard?"

"The platform number," Remus explained to me, "Only witches and wizards know about platform nine and three-quarters. Are you here to see someone off?" he asked me politely.

I wish…

"Oh, um, no," I fidgeted, "I'm going to the school…Hogwarts."

Their eyebrows rose.

Jeez, way to make me feel better.

"You seem to be a rather big first year…" Sirius gave me a look.

Do I _look _like I'm eleven?

"No," I said almost acidly, "I'm going into my _sixth _year." I shuffled my feet a bit.

Mr. Heartbroken scoffed.

"He could pass as a first year, he's short enough to be one." The boys in the backgrounds snorted a bit and laughed between themselves.

I swelled up in annoyance. Just because he was most obviously heartbroken, did _not _give him the reason to be rude! And I wasn't exactly the tallest girl in the world, and I can proudly say that I was roughly around 5'6, but was practically a midget compared to the four boys quite clearly over six-feet tall in front of me…

"Bite it, prat," I shot back.

The look he gave me, I thought he was going to eat me alive.

"Go back to the playground, kid," he stared hard at me.

"Why bother? I could beat you there as well,"

Oh, god, was I asking for it. The other three were already wincing at our little verbal exchange.

"Afraid someone would push you in the sandbox?" he snarled.

"Afraid your head won't fit through the platform with all the hot air?"

"Better watch your mouth, shorty!"

"Better piss off, dip-shit!"

Fists clenched, veins throbbed, and the tension high, the peanut gallery looked like they were watching a tennis match rather than a regular battle of wills.

Which, I so totally won, by the way. I guess I _can_ hold a decent verbal exchange with boys without feeling sexually drawn to them!

"So…uh…" Sirius awkwardly stepped in between us. "The train leaves in ten minutes, so we'd better get on the platform. You know how to, right, Li?" he asked her.

"Um…yeah?" The clueless look on my face said otherwise.

He laughed.

"C'mon, you can go with me."

We walked only a short way, each carrying our respective luggage. I walked behind the four as they laughed amongst themselves about jokes that only they would understand.

Truthfully, I missed having that with my friends back at Beauxbatons.

I sighed.

And can you _blame me?_ I mean, I was standing there, watching these _gorgeous _fellows as I remember that I will not be able to date until I'm out of school.

Life stunk and I had already hit rock bottom.

"Hurry up, shrimp, we want to get on the platform today, you know!" James hollered at me.

I'm sure he's usually a real charmer…

…when he's not PMS-ing, that is.

I snapped out of my trance and walked up to the brick wall between platforms nine and ten. I stared confusedly at it and turned expectantly to the other four.

"What do we do?"

"Watch," Sirius motioned for Peter and Remus to the brick wall. I watched them casually jog up to it together and I felt my eyes grow wide when I thought that they were going to crash. I was _extremely _surprised when they just disappeared. There was no 'poof', there was no smoke, and there weren't even any lights. They were just…gone.

Surely Hogwarts students just don't _apparate _do they?

That left me gawking right in the middle of these two twin towers and scratched my head.

"Um…?"

"Look, James and I will go with you. We'll—be still me beatin' heart! Who is that? Is that—Is that _Alice?_" he looked passed James and I and at some blonde hair blue-eyed bombshell and titled his head slightly. "I will be right back…James, you can handle this, right?"

Nooo! Don't leave me with Mr. Cranky-Pants!

"Wait, you dumbass—"

"Great, thanks, see you in a few." And he went flouncing off.

An awkward silence passed between us.

"Keep up, shorty," he pushed his trolley forward towards the wall.

Have I mentioned just how charming he was?

I quickly pushed my trolley so that I was next to James. The wall was approaching quickly and I glanced over at him, but he seemed not to pay any notice or care that I was scared spitless about crashing.

Gonna die, gonna die, gonna die, gonna die…

I was too close to the wall to come to a halt in time. I shut my eyes, but not before looking at James, and put in an extra burst of speed as I headed right for the wall. To my great surprise, I continued running and peaked open my eyes so that they were greeted to the site of a crimson train that read, 'Hogwarts Express' with dozens and dozens of carriages attached.

I made it through alive!

"Whoa," was all I was capable of saying.

Well, what an extensive vocabulary I've displayed.

People were bustling about, some already in their uniforms. A group of girls passed her and they giggled when I looked at them.

Wackos; I hope they don't think I'm—oh, right…Li…the _boy_.

I didn't notice as James walked off to find his friends because I was busy looking the uniforms they were wearing.

All I want…

The girls stopped walking and whispered to themselves.

Is to be…

I stared at their skirts with blue and bronze sewed on the hemline.

A regular teenage girl…

Sirius came running through the platform, just two feet next to me, unnoticed. He glanced at me, "Li" me, and then to the girls staring and giggling in my direction, and then back to me.

_To just have fun at school..._

"Yeesh, mate, you're already getting some attention and school hasn't even started yet!" Sirius nudged me and I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

_...and have a boyfriend..._

The final warning whistle blew.

"Yeah…I'm going to get on the train now." I walked off.

Is that…

I dropped off my trolley and then dragged my trunk onto the train. I slowly looked around to see people hurrying around me trying to get a good compartment. People stopped and stared at me, (much to my discomfort) for a moment or two before moving on.

_So much to ask…?_

**:-****:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

Wow that was a fun chapter to re-write!

I'm really liking having the story told from Lily's PoV, because that way the story has more humour, and you see the, um, psychological issues that Lily has ^__ ^

**R/R**

**Liebling**


	3. Is That Spanish?

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **31 October 2004  
**Re-Vamped On: **March 2006  
**Chapter Three  
"Is that Spanish?"**

**:-:**

After everyone had stopped gawking at me, (as flattering as it was, it was still rather creepy), they went back in to their compartments leaving the hallways nearly deserted for poor lonely _moi_. Since I didn't know anybody, I had no friends that were searching for me to say "hey" for the first time since summer vacation.

I sighed, (I've been doing a lot of that lately, haven't I?) and continued to drag my trunk down the hallway.

I listened in casually on random conversations through the doors of the compartments and was able to catch a couple sentences and phrases. One particular conversation caught my attention.

"I know! He's totally my favourite—"

"—is soooo hot!"

"I don't know, Remus Lupin is completely _mysterious_…but he's still so…you know?"

Curiously, I froze and slowly turned towards the door to hear what else they would say.

"NO WAY! Sirius Black is _so _much hotter than Remus!" and the squabbling continued. Snorting to myself, I listened for a few minutes as the teenage girls debated over who were hotter out of the guys she had just met.

Ha, but _they _didn't get to know the inner workings of the teenage boys' minds, now did they?

Slightly ashamed because I was eavesdropping, I was about to continue walking until, surprisingly, I heard "Li's" name enter the picture.

"But did you see that new guy hanging out with them?" some girl said to her peers.

"Who? That red-headed boy?"

"Yea! He's a little short, but I don't mind, because if we went out, we'd be about the same size."

Woah, slow your roll there! I'm not going to be dating for a _long _while.

"Do you think he's related to Arthur Weasley? The guy that graduated a couple of years ago? You know, with the hair and all?"

Truthfully, I couldn't believe it…I had only spoken, and argued, with a total of four guys in the past half hour and these complete _strangers _were already talking about me. Sheepishly, I suddenly felt more a bit more confidant and grinned despite it all.

"Don't let it get to your head, shorty," someone had just walked out of the compartment behind me, probably witnessing my jump out of my skin. "They say the same things about every guy they see."

It was James.

Abso-bloody-lutely fantastic…

"I wasn't letting it get to my head," I said defensively and tried to lower my voice to be more 'guy-like', "Besides, it's not as if it'll ever be as big as yours."

"And how would you know?" He narrowed his eyes.

Sirius, who was in the compartment that James had just come out of, could probably smell trouble brewing and took it as the perfect opportune moment to walk out into the hall just as I sarcastically said—

"Because I am _obviously_ psychic," I said dryly, withholding the urge to roll my eyes, "I can tell."

"Alright then, what am I thinking?" He challenged me, obviously not getting the sarcastic hint.

Sigh, all brawns and no brains. Typical.

I made an absurd face at him said nothing.

Sirius laughed.

"I think what Li here is trying to say is that James isn't, has never, and never _will be_ thinking something." He clapped a hand on my shoulder and continued to laugh as James twitched.

"Padfoot!"

Padfoot? What the hell's a padfoot?"

"Don't fret about him too much, Li," Sirius rattled on. "He's just jealous because I got nominated for Quidditch captain this year." He put on a dramatic tone. "Poor Jamesie was just so devastated that he wouldn't show up to practice for a week and refused to talk to any team member."

"_Padfoot!_"

Sirius is a padfoot? Huh...?

"The only reason he probably didn't get chosen for captain was because he was always arsing around during practice." Sirius continued, ignoring the red-faced James.

He looked like a tomato with glasses. _Très, très, amusant._

"Oh?" he said stonily. "And you never arsed around during practice?" He looked genuinely shocked. "Blimey, Sirius, you're one to talk! Last year you were trying to snog that Georgia skirt during water breaks!" He looked annoyed.

Sirius looked offended, "I was not _trying _to snog Georgia; I _was _snogging her!" Oh, good heavens… "And what about the time when you dipped all the broom handles in honey?"

"We both did that, you idiot!"

He looked thoughtful for a minute.

"Oh yeah…"

Remus, who had silently walked out of the compartment behind the squabbling Sirius and James, walked up to me as we both tried to stifle our laughter at their immaturity.

"_Sont-ils toujours comme ceci?_" Are they always like this? I asked Remus.

"_Effrayé ainsi_," Afraid so. Remus shrugged off nonchalantly. "_Tu va les habitué. __Ils sont les meilleurs des amis, réellement_." You'll get used to them. They're the best of friends, actually.

"Hey you two lovebirds, let's get in the compartment, Prongs brought us some chocolate from his summer vacation in France! First come, first serve!" He shuffled back into the compartment.

My heart stopped. French chocolate? NO WAY!

"HEY! You just can't tell people to help themselves to my food! That stuff was expensive!" James followed Sirius back into the compartment so that he could lecture him about mannerisms.

Remus held open the door for me.

Such a sweetheart!

"_Tu veux t'asseoir avec nous?_" Would you like to sit with us? Remus asked me politely.

Would you like to marry me?

"_Ouais! Merci! Ce serait grand!_" Yeah! Thanks! That'd be great! I smiled energetically as we walked through the door and I carefully made my way to the window seat and avoided a large mass of chocolate wrappers completely littering the floor.

I briefly noticed the fact that James was seated just in front of me.

Bugger.

The train gave a sudden violent shake that scared the bejeebes out of me. The metro rides are _so _much smoother.

"Hey, Li," Sirius said, "Want some chocolate? Or as they would say in cheese-a go-go land, _shocolaah_." He said jokingly.

As I took the chocolate, I gave him a funny look as I tried to understand what he was saying.

Shocolaah?

Oh…_chocolate._ Idiot.

"It's pronounced _chocolat_," I reprimanded.

Sirius looked at me again, "Is that Spanish?" he asked.

I blinked

"Are you serious?"

"Yes," he nodded, "I'm Sirius, that's James, he's Peter, and he's Remus. I thought we already went over this!"

Boy, did I walk right into _that _one.

"_Ne sentez pas le mauvais, Li_," Don't feel bad, Li. Remus intervened . "_Il fait toujours cela...Il est l'un des plus mauvais calembours au monde_." He always does that...It's one of the worst puns in the world. Remus shook his head and I nodded in agreement.

For the first time, Sirius noticed the language barrier separating Remus and I from the rest of the group.

"Quit speaking Spanish! I don't know what you're saying about me! It's not fair!" Sirius looked annoyed.

Ugh! Closed-minded little…

"It's not Spanish, for the last time, you muppet!" I snapped half-heartedly.

My other half was inwardly spazzing.

"Don't expect him to understand," James said coolly, "_Il est trop lentament pour comprendre n'importe quoi._" He's too slow to understand anything. James scoffed and turned his chin upwards.

"You speak French?" Remus and I chorused looking bewildered.

"You speak Spanish?" Sirius had asked at the same time.

Holy crap; did _not _see that one coming.

"Of course I know Span—French!" He quickly corrected himself. "I spent almost all of my summers in France since I was four, you morons. You've visited me ever since second year!" he stared annoyed at his friends.

There's that charm I was talking about. Ignore my rolling eyes.

"That's…interesting," said Remus, almost bewildered looking, "I wasn't under the impression that you had been interested in learning the language. Did you know that Li here is from France?"

Li? Oh, right…me. Ack.

I momentarily wondered that if what James said was true, if I had ever seen him before in the summer holidays. I chewed on my chocolate thoughtfully.

Mmm, Ciel…

I learned within the first month after I had moved that the French chocolate was at the least ten times better than the English.

No offence, to all you Brits out there.

"So?" he said.

Mannerisms must not rate very high on him, I suppose.

"Have you ever met him before?" Peter squeaked.

"I don't hang out with people like him." He crossed his arms.

Um? Just _what the hell is that supposed to mean?_ How are Remus, Sirius, and Peter even _friends_ with this guy? I wanted to know.

"Jeez, Prongs, could you be anymore conceited?" even Sirius, who I could _tell _was a normally light-hearted character, was slightly unsure of the sour attitude.

I couldn't help but cut in, "Carefully, Sirius, better not use big words with him." I said before James could respond. "It might confuse him even more."

"Li..." Remus whispered quietly out of the corner of his mouth.

"You little—"

"I mean, you probably have your mind in the gutter about how you snogged some poor girl over the summer—" My sentence was stopped short by Remus who was gently putting a warning hand on my shoulder the same moment Sirius leapt up and shouted "PHHFRAAAAWWWR!" as he pounced on us both.

"_What the—?_" I started before we all crashed to the floor and I got sandwiched into the wall.

What. The. HELL?

"Don't bring it up." Sirius whispered warningly almost inaudibly _in my ear_. I had never been this close to a boy who wasn't a family member and it made me shiver slightly.

"It'll just get him upset." Remus, for once, sounded slightly unsure. And in pain.

"He knows some of the damn best hexes and curses and won't hesitate to use them…" Sirius sounded like he knew from experience.

Well too damn bad! So did I! I could charm his shoes to eat his feet if I wanted to!

James eyes narrowed as stood over his friends (and me) who were still in a tangled mess of limbs on the floor.

"I'll have you know…" his voice was like a snake's hiss.

Oh sod, I was gonna die before I even get to the damn school.

"That none of my personal life is any of your business!" he turned on his heel and climbed over the group of us to get out of the compartment.

Somehow, I felt like I had gotten off easy as everyone around me let go of the breaths that they were holding and visibly relaxed. Peter stopped trying to shrink into the wall from his seat on the bench, and let out a breath he had been holding.

"What," I said, "the _devil _his wrong with him?" I asked the foot next to my head that I assumed belonged to Remus.

"Well…" the foot shifted slightly. "Girls have always been a touchy subject for James." Nope, I was talking to Sirius' foot. "And he recently had a small…_problem_ with his last relationship."

"Problem?" I quirked my head. I heard a muffled reply from somewhere in my side and I carefully crawled out from underneath and helped them back up.

"Yes," said Remus rather breathlessly as he dusted himself off. "There was…one particular girl that he seemed quite infatuated with over the past two summers." He began to tell the tale as everyone took his (or her!) seats. "They met last summer when he was fifteen, and it was a slow process, but the potential was definitely there." Remus shook his, obviously feeling sorry for James.

Heartbroken; I knew it.

"They kept in touch over the school year and they started dating last summer." He smiled sadly, "They were so happy together. Do you remember how they looked, Sirius?"

Sirius laughed, "You don't know the _half _of it, Moony,"

Moony? Am I missing something here?

"When I came to visit, the first place I went, naturally, was to the kitchens after my _long _journey through the fireplace." We grinned as he kicked back his feet onto the seat. "Wanna take a gander as to what I saw? James and Danielle, making brownies."

HA HA HA!

"HA HA HA!" everyone was in a right fit. Abso-bloody-lutely hilarious!

The only thing I could see was James running around in a pink, lacey, and frilly apron with flour on his forehead!

HA HA _HA!_

"Yes, but," Remus decided to continue with the story, seeing as Sirius, quite clearly, could not. "Well, all summers come to an end and well," suddenly he looked reluctant, as though he really shouldn't be sharing this information, "This one seemed to end just a little bit too soon for James. They both wanted to go in different directions and they…well, they broke up."

I got the feeling that he was skipping out in information form my sake.

"That's so sad," I said.

I'm a sucker for sob stories….

"Yea, well, we can't change the past, now can we?" Sirius shrugged his shoulders.

"So what was she like?" I asked.

Sirius looked around quickly, and even decided to peak outside into the corridor, "Sorry," he said, "It's just that James has been known to pop up whenever we mention her.

"Okay…" What a weirdo.

"She was beautiful!" Peter said eagerly once Sirius was seated.

"And more importantly, Danielle was _very _bright," said Remus.

"She and James made the _best _brownies in all of France," Sirius added and closed his eyes, obviously remembered. "Such a shame they cut the string, eh?"

Oh, how I doubted that. I can be a pretty mean cook when I want to be.

I decided to ask, "How'd they meet?"

"We have no idea," said Remus, "I just remember James writing a letter to us saying that he wanted us to meet his new girlfriend over the summer.

Sirius snorted.

"He made it sound like he wanted our blessings."

"Where'd she go to school?" I asked, taking another bite of chocolate

Sirius took another quick peak out into the hallway before turning back to me and said, "Beauxbatons,"

You know that chocolate I was eating? Yeah, it got stuck way down deep in my esophagus and I started coughing and flailing wildly until Sirius gave me one hard _thunk _on the back.

"What? She an old girlfriend or something?"

Hell, no.

"N-no, of course not," I said hurriedly, "That was just my old school and I don't remember a girl named…" I trailed off as they looked at me with strangely. "What?"

There was silence through out the compartment and all you could hear were the wheels of the train rolling over the tracks.

Remus looked at me with uncertainty, "You…attended an all-girls private school?"

…DAMN IT!

I blushed, furious at myself for my own stupid mistake.

"Ah, _mais non! _There was a—um—_-neighboring _school that was correspondent to Beauxbatons…Except it was for boys, I mean. Er—_BeauxBARTONS,_ yeah…"

Nice one, Lily.

"Oh, cool," they said.

Jeez, if all guys were this thick, I doubted getting through the year would be too hard.

For the entire ride, I was trying to rack my brain and remember if there was a girl in my year at Beauxbatons named Danielle. Who was she? How did she know James?

I decided that I would have to write Charlie and ask her to snoop around for me.

By three, the gentle vibrations and lurches on the train had just been enough for me to curl up my legs onto the seat fall asleep, snoring…loudly.

How embarrassing.

Eventually, I awoke to an odd site before me. First off, I noticed that James still hadn't returned, and second, while I had been curled up in a corner, sleeping, Remus, Sirius, and Peter had decided to change into their school uniforms. Sirius was in his boxers, digging through his trunk, Remus was in the process of taking off his casual shirt, and Peter was in nothing _but _his shirt.

Holy geebs—blushing to the point of combustion!

"I—I—Ihavetogo!"

I am _so _smooth.

I grabbed my knapsack with my uniform and shot out of there like a bat out of hell and ran as fast as my little legs would carry me.

Everyone blinked in confusion.

* * *

I made my way to the bathroom so I could have a safe place to change, but was slightly annoyed to find that somebody else was already in it.

I leaned against the door and rubbed my head

Lying was one thing, but finding the privacy to change would be another ordeal

I can't do this…

But then, of course, I thought of John and how disappointed he would be.

The door suddenly flew open sending me crashing into a boy I had never met before. He was already in his robes with a green and silver necktie, (Slytherin, I immediately noticed; I had already read _Hogwarts: A History), _and had long greasy hair (ack! Get the boy some shampoo—STAT!) that matched his coal black eyes that made me feel like he was looking right through me.

I gulped as he continued to stare at me even after we moved out of each other's way. I got into the bathroom as soon as I could and shut the door quickly.

Weird…

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N: **

There you are, everyone! Thank you _so _much to everyone who has been so dedicated! I'm still surprised that I haven't updated in so long and I'm _still _getting reviews!

I love you all to bits and pieces!

The next three chapters should be out sometime this week or _possibly _the next.

Love Liebling!


	4. Sleeping Arrangments

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **31 December 2004  
**Re-Vamped On:** 30 May 2006  
**Chapter 4  
**"**Sleeping Arrangements"**

**:-:**

After I had successfully changed into my male uniform garb, I threw my backpack over my shoulder and slowly walked back to the compartment. My hand lingered on the handle for a lengthy moment before I cautiously opened the door and peaked in. Letting out a breath, I was relieved to see that all the guys were fully clothed (darn it!), and walked in.

"Hey, Li, where'd you hop off to?" Sirius asked from the window seat.

"Er—nowhere, just the lavatory," I answered quickly as I placed myself across from Remus who was seated next to the half-asleep Peter.

"Might want to be careful," Sirius warned, "I thought I saw Snape roaming the hallways a little while ago."

"Snape?"

"Yes, Severus Snape," Remus nodded seriously, "He's a funny character, really. Not in her humorous sort of way, though. He has always been…sort of an oddball with his grade."

Then we should get along just splendidly, now won't we? I thought a little wryly.

Remus adjusted himself in his seat. "Snape has never particularly liked Sirius, Peter, James, or myself, more so with James," he explained, "I suppose it could be the cause of a slight envy on the Quidditch field...but he _hates_ Gryffindors and is known for his knowledge of _questionable_ magic."

"What does he look like?" I asked so that I would know for future reference.

"Well," Remus began, "He's not too tall, not too short,"

Vague, much?

"And his hair is a dark greasy black..." Sirius added as Peter started to awkwardly snore slightly on Remus' shoulder, who looked uncomfortable and tried to politely shove him off.

"And it always seems like he looks a bit...er, grumpy,"

"Or constipated," Sirius chided.

"And his nose is slightly on the large side…" Remus added imprecisely.

"And he's in—"

"Slytherin?" I finished dryly, recalling the colours of _his _school tie.

I mean, it was only _natural _that I would casually bump into some one that was already doomed to hate me, right?

Both Remus and Sirius nodded.

"Have you seen him before?" Remus asked worriedly.

"I think so," I didn't _think, _I _knew_. When I had been waiting outside the doorway of the bathroom, and accidentally bumped into him, I knew right away that I would not forget him easily. Although he did not say one single word to me, I could still feel the lingering effects of his penetrating stare. "I don't think he liked me that much."

"I would be terribly surprised if he did," Remus said, "He likes a very seldom few at Hogwarts."

"Speaking of which," I skilfully chose to change the topic, "You three are in Gryffindor, correct?" I motioned to the colours of their ties around their necks.

"Yeaup," Sirius answered for them.

"And what about James?" I was hesitant to ask.

"Gryffindor,"

Of course he was…

"Right,"

Speaking of Mr. Cranky-Pants, I had wondered where he has wandered off to.

"I suppose that's why they gave you the Hogwarts black tie like the first years," clarified Remus, "I guess you'll have to have some one send you your house colours later,"

I nodded as the conversation ended there and Sirius challenged Remus to a game of exploding snaps while I rummaged through my bag.

I had packed my headset and I was happy that I would have something to listen to in the awkward silences. Making sure that the volume was turned _way _down, I pressed play and began to nod off just a bit. I highly doubted that most boys my age listened to 'The Mighty Minnie Mice', a popular muggle girl band.

Moments later, the music was droned out by Sirius saying—

"We're going to be there in about an hour," he said it with raised eyebrows.

Okaaay…That's just peachy an' all, but I wanted to listen to my music now, thanks.

I nodded, not fully understanding what he meant by that random titbit of information and continued to listen to my tunes. But soon enough, approximately twenty minutes later, my tape player began to crackle and finally completely cancelled out.

_So_ not cool.

Completely confused, I changed the batteries and tried again. No dice.

Sirius, who had been watching me, laughed, (the jerk). "Nice try, but no cigar, Li," he placed another card down on the table. "Ecklectro-phonix don't work at Hogwarts."

"You mean…electronics?" I corrected.

Sirius shrugged, "Pot_a_to, Pat_o_to, same difference,"

I stared at him dryly, "You aren't used to muggle culture, are you?"

"Nope, born and raised by wizards," his voice seemed to go hollow as he said it.

So I decided that we were going to _completely _dodge that subject. Because to me, it seemed like he was almost ashamed to say it so I didn't press further.

"What about you, Li?" Remus asked.

"Muggle-born,"

"Ah," was all Remus said until after he collected all of the cards off the floor. "No wonder Snape didn't like you; most Slytherins are like that, I'm afraid…"

How in the world did Snape know that I was a muggle-born? Do all slimy Slytherins have X-Ray vision or something? Yeesh, give me a break!

However, outwardly I asked, "They don't like people who were raised by muggles?"

"Not just that," said Remus, "They don't like muggles _period_."

Wow, the witches in France were a lot more open-minded…

"No one in your family was a witch or wizard, I assume?" added Remus.

"No," I corrected him, "Just my uncle. He got me interested in Quidditch before I knew I was a wit—wizard."

_Real _good catch, Lily.

Luckily, neither boy noticed my blunder.

"Oh, so you like Quidditch, do you?" Sirius said, sounding positively delighted. "It _just so happens _that we are in dire need of a new beater and a chaser. What position do you play?"

"Lead chaser, mostly,"

There was silence.

Wait for it…

Any second now…

"That's James' position…" Remus mumbled apologetically.

And there it is!

I sighed, "Figures…"

Stupid bastard wasn't even _there _and he was making my life more difficult.

"But no worries, Li," Sirius patted me on the back leaving it feel all…tingly, "You can always make a good right wing," he tried to give me a ray of hope.

"I'm left handed," I glared darkly.

Remus and Sirius cringed, but the latter didn't bother to stop talking, "I, myself, didn't get to play beater until I was in third year…But I must say, I was the most dashing looking water-boy that Hogwarts has ever seen!" he patted his hand over his chest.

Trust me, I believed him.

I figured that Sirius probably was right and I could still find a position on _some _Quidditch team and we all laughed together, drowning out Peter's snoring.

"Oy, have you guys heard?" Sirius asked in a hushed whisper as though he was afraid that some one else might hear.

"That they aren't selling prophylactics at Hogsmead anymore?" asked Remus dryly.

"No! Not _that _news!" He waved Remus' comment off dismissively.

Great…they're all pervs. I _knew _there was no such thing as a good-looking guy who was single! Curses, foiled again!

"The school governors are currently in debate about whether girls should be allowed to play on the Quidditch house teams!" he said, "Since the _International Quidditch Association_ started letting women play on their teams last year, apparently the governors began to debate the topic and, rumour has it, they're going to reach a verdict by the end of the school year!"

I pursed my lips tightly. Why couldn't they have had this argument _last _year?

"It's a shame that they couldn't have it finished by try outs," I said truthfully pretending to be calm while I was inwardly steaming, "That way the girls would be able to try out for this season."

"True," Sirius nodded, "It would make the games a helluva lot more interesting!" he grinned and I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

Remus, being my ultimate hero, said quite diplomatically, "I really do think that the girls should be allowed to play. They seem really energetic about it at the games and I know for a fact that there are some rather brilliant female flyers in Gryffindor,"

And me! But I suppose that I didn't really count, now did I?

"I think they could do so much better than just settling them all in a club," he finished.

Here, here! I like this one!

"I know," I added on enthusiastically, "It's about time some one told them that this was the twentieth century!"

"Who knows?" said Sirius, "This time next year we could be watching a co-ed Quidditch game at Hogwarts!"

I inwardly grinned at the idea.

"So, Li," Sirius asked out of the blue, "What brings you to Hogwarts no less than five years late?"

Brilliant question, Mr. Trebbek.

I fiddled with her hands and contemplated the idea on telling them the truth—not all of it, just why I had to move to England.

"Oh…I just moved in with my uncle over the summer and we agreed that it'd be better for me to go somewhere closer to home,"

"Why don't you live with your parents?" Sirius frowned deeply and leaned in.

"Er—there was an…accident, back in France." I said vaguely, hoping they'd be uninterested.

"What sort of accident?" Sirius blinked a bit, intrigued.

I mumbled something half against the window, and half into my sweatshirt.

"Sorry?" said Remus.

I repeated myself. Even though my answer wasn't entirely auditable, I think Sirius and Remus were able to catch at least three words: _You-Know-Who_.

"Oh…" Sirius looked down into his lap, ashamed.

Why, I don't know. _He _wasn't the one who killed my parents. At least I would hope not.

Remus gave me a sympathetic look.

No one decided to continue the conversation and all forms dialogue pretty much diminished from there and the rest of ride was in complete silence. As I sat in the compartment with my head against the window, I began to wonder what the future at this new school would hold in store for me.

The train stopped for the first time in hours, and James had still not returned. You would think that he had walked off a cliff or something.

Remus had woken Peter up and the four of us followed the crowd and walked off of the train and into the "horseless" carriages.

Do you ever experience a time when you don't feel the full gravity of the situation until later? For example, if your uncle tells you to masquerade as a bloke for the next two years, and you love your uncle and can't help but _want _to help him…but you don't realise until later the expense you're really going through?

Yes? Well then insert those emotions _here _and multiply them times twelve.

_Plus _two.

I suppose that it was his love for Quidditch that had blinded his older brother-like love for me into doing something _so insanely stupid_. I never wanted any of this; I just wanted to go back to my home in France with mum and dad.

My best friend was hundreds of miles away, I have some greasy git named Severus Snape on my arse already, and this other little berk who thinks he is just gods gift to school named after some pigs _disfigured countenance! _UUUURRGHH!!!!

Not only did we not like each other in the _least_ bit, but also he played MY favourite spot on the Quidditch field…_Well, _I thought evilly, _we're just going to have to change that now, aren't we?_

Quite frankly, I had no idea as to what to do once the carriages had stopped moving and I had reached the gates with Sirius, Remus, and Peter, so I silently followed the three and was thankful that they hadn't minded.

I was about to walk into this HUMUNGO room that I thought I heard people around me call 'The Great Hall,' when something stopped me. I shivered violently as though I had been suddenly tossed into a pool of ice-cold water in December.

And, quite frankly, I didn't feel like swimming.

I whirled around and came face-to-face with the first real ghost that I had ever seen.

Holy sweet Merlin she was creepy-looking.

"Are you Mr. Evans?" she asked as she bobbled up and down slightly.

"Erm…Yes…" my voice squeaked.

"Wonderful, you are to come with me!" she smiled and began to lead me away from the forming crowd. I was so entranced by astral aspects of the ghost that I wasn't exactly watching were I was headed…which happened to be a wall that some one put in front of me.

"Oww…"

"Come on, deary," the ghost said with an ungodly cheerful voice, "Right this way!" The ghost led me to a well-organized office that was more of a library if anything. "Professor McGonagall will be with you in a moment." And she floated off.

The must be fun; just floating around all day wherever you please…and you don't have to pay room and board!

I sat on a hard wooden chair, and wished (almost dreamily) that I had the support of Sirius or Remus…Time seemed to go into eternity, which happened to only be half an hour, or so, when a tall woman with square glasses walked through carrying parchment and a peculiar hat of some sort.

Shall I pull a rabbit out of it for you? I actually had a rather violent dream about a rabbit pulling _me _out of my school hat…terribly frightening.

"Mr. Evans, I presume?" The woman stared down at me.

Way to make me feel about two inches tall. I already had Potter ragging on me about my height; I didn't need it from my professors as well.

"Yes, ma'am,"

"Sixth year?"

"Yes, ma'am,"

"Age sixteen?"

SIR, YES, SIR!

"Yes, ma'am,"

The woman stared so long at me that that I had this eerie feeling that I was being X-rayed in some way.

The school was filled to the brim with pervs.

"Very well," she said at last while adjusting her glasses, "My name is Professor Minerva McGonagall, deputy head mistress, and head of the Gryffindor house. Have you read through most of your books?"

"Yes, professor," I added the new title like the good little kiss-up I am.

"All of them? Most of them? A quick flip through?" The stern professor questioned.

Like I had anything _else_ to do this summer. Beauxbatons had excused me from all work since the death of my parents. As long as I showed up for class, I passed fifth year.

"All of them, professor,"

"Good to know that you are on top of things," she nodded curtly in approval.

"Thank you, professor,"

I am such a teacher's pet; I disgust even myself sometimes.

"So I believe that it is safe to assume that you have read up on the four Hogwarts houses in _Hogwarts: A History_, chapter five, page eighty-two, to ninety-three?"

I nodded, still slightly perturbed by Professor McGonagall's attitude.

"Good," she said, "However, to keep some of Hogwarts most known secrets _secret_, we do not publish our sorting procedure which I am sure you noticed."

Really? I just thought they divided us alphabetically…especially considering how I didn't know James', Sirius', Remus', (so many _s_'s!) or even Peter's last name.

I shook my head, still speechless. Even though I wasn't speaking, that never seems to stop my mind from wandering around.

"No one here decides what house you belong in," she went on to explain, "This hat is only used to _guide _you and help you discover where you would do best. Your house reflects your personality, courage, fear, talent, and brilliance. The hat only helps you see that, the final decision is almost always yours."

She really makes things sound like fun…yawn.

Professor McGonagall placed the hat on my head (Aagh! hat hair!) and walked over to her desk where one of the quills was casually writing on its own. Nervously, I closed her eyes, unsure of what to expect.

'_Ah' _said a voice.

AAAAAAAGGGGHHHH! THIS SCHOOL PUTS VOICES IN YOUR HEAD!

The voice spoke again like a whisper in my ear. Well, laughed is more like it…but after that it said:

'_We have only had a small handful of Evans at Hogwarts before,'_ the hat was actually _talking _to me! _'Oh, how I see so much deceit in you…Even to your friends!'_

HOLY CRAP! The hat was a frikkin' _mind reader!_

"Please don't tell," I whispered hurriedly.

Unknowingly to me, (I had later learned, that is) Professor McGonagall briefly glanced up at the Sorting Hat and me.

'_And secrets!' _The hat went on, _'Those are mighty Slytherin traits, you know,' _

Hm…Slytherin…Severus Snape…Ugghh…I crossed my fingers.

'_Not a big Slytherin fan, are you? Well, I do supposed that you probably would not get along so well with the others coming from a muggle family…' _

HALLEJUIA!

I sighed in relief.

'_I see brilliance, loads of brilliance, actually, you would get along mighty well with the Ravenclaw folk, they would appreciate your talents in your studies…'_ I wouldn't have minded being in Ravenclaw, they seemed like a nice bunch of people. Lovely skirts, too; not that I could wear one…

'_But there is also a humble side to you that would belong in Hufflepuff, isn't there, MISS Evans?'_

Oh jeebes…

I groaned; so that hat did know.

Again, Professor McGonagall peaked over at me in the over-sized mind-reading hat.

'_Now, now, do not fret, Lily, I may just be but a lowly hat, but I am wonderful at keeping secrets.' _I would have bet anything that if that hat could've, it probably would've winked at me as it watched (felt?) me sigh in relief.

'_It takes pounds and pounds of courage to be able to put on such a masquerade. You really are quite selfless, I see. Being brave after your family was killed, moving to another country, taking in a whole new identity to please your uncle so that you may attend a completely new school, making new friends, new enemies…'_ the hat trailed off.

Well that sounded foreboding…

'I believe that it is quite obvious where you belong, Lily Evans…'

Well that's nice, now let's skip the dramatic pausing and just tell me.

'_You really are quite impatient, Lily,'_ the hat sighed.

HA! You're one to—!

"GRYFFINDOR!" The hat exclaimed into the office for all to hear—which was actually just Professor McGonagall. _'Good Luck, Lily,'_ The Sorting Hat said to me before it went quiet.

Well, that hadn't been too bad.

McGonagall walked over and nimbly swiped the hat clear off my head.

Static cling—aaarggh! Damn hat!

"Congratulations, Mr. Evans," She said. "Follow me, and I will show you to your dorm room." Flattening out my hair as best I could, I quickly learned that Professor McGonagall was, not only strict, but also a fast walker. I was getting my daily exercise by just trying to keep up.

Many rooms, floors, portraits, and staircases later, Professor McGonagall pointed to a portrait of a large woman in a pink dress.

Wow, that was _a lot _of pink…

I looked at the professor, confused.

"Through this portrait is the Gryffindor Commons. The staircase on your left leads to boy dormitories and the stair case on your right leads to the girls—which you will _not_ under any circumstances be allowed to enter." I nodded.

Yeah, like I was about to open my big fat mouth at _that_ comment.

"The current password is 'Adonis'," the portrait swung open on its own, allowing us to enter. "The passwords change frequently and the prefects will be informing their houses of the change. Your luggage will be arriving within the hour." She then walked off leaving me to my own devise.

Which were…um?

Very few people noticed me entering, which I was grateful for. I had almost made it to the _boy's _(oh, dear) staircases when some one familiar called out my name.

"Hey, Li!" The common room went silent at the unfamiliar name. "You in Gryffindor?" It was Sirius, and I didn't feel like talking.

I would be there for a while.

"Of course he's in Gryffindor, Sirius," Remus answered for him. "Why else would he be in here?" He rolled his eyes. "Congratulations, Li," Remus smiled while some random girls in the corner giggled.

No, not _me…_

"Sirius thought that you were too nice and would end up in Hufflepuff,"

"I wouldn't go up there if I were you," Sirius warned me half-heartedly as he noticed me trying to make a getaway, "James is snoozing. He's still a bit ticked. Come sit with us, we don't bite," said Sirius, "Well, I don't, that is; Moony, however…"

Remus elbowed him.

"I wasn't going to see James," I said once I had sat down, "I was going to my room."

Sirius and Remus stared at me for a moment making me feel more uncomfortable, before they loudly burst out in laughter.

"G-good one, Li," Sirius laughed, holding onto his side.

Um, let's _not _laugh at the poor new student, shall we?

"Y-_your _room?" _Remus _was even laughing!

I sat there unsure of what to say…what the hell was wrong with going to my room? And why would James taking a nap bother me?

"Li," Remus said seriously, "We sleep in a dorm—we _share _a room."

I think that my face was completely devoid of blood as I looked at them bewilderedly.

"You…you didn't know that?" Remus said, completely shocked—but not as shocked as _me!_

When John said that I would be, um, "sleeping with the guys", and I thought that it was sort of, I dunno, girls on the west wing of the castle, and guys on the right, or something. At worst, I had expected a roommate or possibly even two.

I didn't answer them but stared down into my lap something in my left eye twitching.

Sirius chuckled. "There, there, Li," he said and casually slung an arm over my shoulder. "It's not as though you've got anything we don't got,"

You've got to love the boys' wonderful sense of grammar.

Twitch-twitch…

I felt my face pale even more, if possible. "Yeah…" I paused. "Do either of you have some extra parchment and a pen or quill?"

…to painfully stick into my _brain?_

"Yes, I might," said Remus, before disappearing up into the dorm room (_dorm room!)_. He came back down minutes later and gave his supplies to me because mine was god only knew where.

"And…where is the library?" I asked quietly.

I would need a place to vent.

Loudly.

"Take two stair cases down to the fifth floor, walk around the statue that looks like your big toe with a crooked nail _twice _before knocking lightly. It will open up and that will take you to the third floor. Find the portrait of Mr. Bertie Bott, tell him Sirius Black says 'hi' by the way, and ask him politely for a toffee flavoured bean and he'll let you take the passage that will dump you off at the tapestry near the second floor of the library." Sirius said this all very nonchalantly.

I looked at him strangely, eyes wide like teacup saucers.

"Er, here," Remus spoke up, "I'll escort you there, I have some studying of my own that I would like to do,"

"School hasn't even started, Moony!" Sirius wailed as we began to leave.

"I wouldn't peg Sirius as the type of guy who would know if the school even had a library," I said on our way out.

"Neither would I," Remus agreed.

"What?" he said yelled out defensively as we were leaving, "No one suspects anything when I'm there…!"

Oddly enough, Sirius' route proved true and we quickly reached the second floor of the Library. Once we had entered, Remus was promptly engrossed in one of his books while I set myself up at one of the tables and started to write my letter.

My first letter was to Charlotte:

_Dear Charlie, _

_Hogwarts—and no it's not a pig's disease—is huge! It must be at least _twice _as big as Beauxbatons. There are secret passageways for goodness sake! The people here seem really nice and ditto with the boys! –wink wink–_

_I don't think that I'll be seeing anyone or even getting into the dating pool for a _long _while. Besides, I doubt anyone would want to date me._

HA! _There's _an understatement for you.

_But what about you? Have you been seeing anyone lately? Sneaking any of the local boys into the castle? Get caught? I hope that you'll have better luck than me in the male category. _

_I hope that Madam Maxine is fairing well, do give her my regards. _

_All the best, _

_Love from Lily _

I proofread it quickly and double-checked to see if anyone was looking at me or saw me pen my real name.

I folded the letter neatly and put into my pocket. Now…to write to that idiotic uncle of mine…

_John,_

_I made it here alive. I really don't like you right now. Send lots of chocolate._

_Love Lily_

What? It was short and sweet and to the point. Besides, I wasn't even close to finished…

"Hey, Remus?"

"Yes?"

"Does this Hogsmead place of yours sell howlers?"

**:-****:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

Huzzah! Sorry it took so long, and I really can't think of an excuse as to why it was so delayed…no, wait, I lied. I had exams! So _there!_

*thwonk*

Ow…

**Fackyews:**

**Your French is off  
***sighs* I know, I know…

**How do you pronounce Lily's boy name?  
**L_EE – _Like the last syllable of 'Lily'

**Is the Voldemort plot going to be relevant?  
**Nope, only in the least bit.

_Love, Liebling!_


	5. Karma's Grudge

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **29 May 2005  
**Re-Vamped On: **14 June 2006  
**Chapter Five  
"Karma's Grudge"**

**:-:**

After a long restless night in the dormitory, I was able to drag myself out of bed the next morning for the first day of classes. The mere thought of James sleeping in the next bed over unnerved me so completely that I was not able to get _any _sleep.

My head was drooping precariously into the oatmeal…

"QUIDDITCH TRYOUTS!" Proclaimed Sirius happily to half the table in a singsong voice. "Who's up for the challenge?" he held up a sign up sheet.

Snapping out of my blissful reverie, I groggily snatched the parchment out of Sirius hands and signed _Li Evans_ in oddly precise handwriting, and wrote _Lead Chaser_ next to it.

Take _that, _James.

"Blimey, Li, your handwriting is neat," said Sirius, taking it back and pulling it closer to his face, "It reminds me of one of my old girlfriend's…" Sirius trailed off.

"Whose? Rebecca's?" Peter asked.

"Hmm…no, not her," He stroked his chin.

"Carol?" He tried.

"No, I don't think so,"

"Georgia?"

"Nah,"

Sirius and Peter both began walking down the table together, one of them determined to figure out just what girl Sirius was referring to because he apparently has no life whatsoever…

I let my head drop onto the table.

Remus came up from behind, "Tired, Li?"

Jolting up, I nodded blearily.

"Are you trying out for Quidditch?" He asked politely.

I found it odd that he was a guy and so good at small talk. Blimey, if he asked me for the _weather _I would be enthralled.

"I'm going to aim for a chaser position," I told him, "I don't really mind if I don't get it though, as long as I make the team, it's no big loss." I shrugged again, secretly hoping that I would be able to swindle James out of his position. "Do you play?" I asked.

He grinned slightly, "No, I'm afraid not," he said, "I don't think I could see myself dedicating all of my time to something as big as Quidditch. I really don't have the stamina," Remus shrugged sadly, "but I do manage the team and the equipment when there's a practice or a game."

Not wanting to push anymore into the subject, I nodded, but couldn't help but get the feeling that I was in the loop about something big.

Moments later, after picking up a piece of toast, I turned to Remus, "I'm heading back to the dorm to read a bit before classes, see you later,"

Truthfully, I was going to be doing some research on my new dorm mates and figure out what the _hell was wrong with everybody. _Besides James, that is, because I already knew that he was mental. But _why couldn't I be able to see a sweaty Remus out on a broomstick?_

I munched moodily on my toast in the hallway and turned the corner, accidentally bumping into somebody.

"Ouch—_Shorty_," I heard HIM mumble—a dead give away to his identity, obviously.

"Four-eyes," was my instant reply, not even looking into the face of the offender.

Four-eyes? What am I? Seven?

I was contemplating my age mentality almost all the way to the Gryffindor tower—like I had _any _idea as to where I was going. McGonagall had said, "tower", and assuming that towers were on the top floor…I would just have to keep climbing staircases.

I was walking along a nearly desolate corridor where several girls were snickering amongst themselves. For some reason, I always felt this trickle of apprehension down my back when I heard people laughing. But then I realised that they were making fun of a slightly overly serene-looking girl walking past with strange teal coloured splotches in her hair and whose bag had ripped with her books spilling out in a cascade across the floor.

More than likely because of one of the other girl's _diffindo _charm.

I suddenly remembered why I had only a few friends back at Beauxbatons. Although the girls didn't care much for all of this pureblood/mudblood nonsense, they were cold, cruel, catty, mean and sometimes nasty.

I walked past the sniggering girls and dropped to my knees and wordlessly helped the girl and repaired her torn bag.

"I'm Joanna Channon. You can call me Jo," she said without being asked and held out her hand. Jeez, I don't know why so many girls like to have guy-sounding names: _Charlie _and _Jo_. Then again, I'm not quite sure if I have a rite to criticize right now…

I looked up into her _insanely _blue and protuberant eyes that made her appear as though she were constantly being surprised that were framed by long stringy blonde hair.

"Li Evans," I said, taking her hand.

"That's a lovely name," Jo had an interesting almost monotone voice that seemed to hold a sense of awe, serenity, and patience.

I shrugged, "Thanks. Yours is nice, too," Vaguely, I noticed the other girls had stopped giggling and ran out of the corridor fast as possible, possibly embarrassed by how mean they really were.

Or they had to go reapply their faces.

You know, whatever.

"It was very kind of you to help me with my books," said Jo, "Not many students like to help me,"

I couldn't help but falter at her barefaced honesty, "No problem," I said, feeling rather awkward with this girl, "So what year and house are you in?"

"Sixth year, Gryffindor," she answered as we both stood to our feet, "Are you as well?" she motioned to my standard black tie, lacking supportive house colours that, I was informed, were to be sent to me by the end of the first week of classes.

"Yeah," I answered.

Jo didn't beat around the bush, and I had a feeling that there would never be many awkward silences around her as she said, "Would you like me to show you to your classes?"

Like you wouldn't believe.

"That'd be great, thanks," I said out loud, "I just need to find the Gryffindor tower and get my books…" I trailed off, not exactly knowing where the tower was. "What floor are we on?"

"The fourth," she answered as though it were obvious.

"But I've been climbing staircases for the past twenty minute!" I exclaimed.

"Some like to change on Wednesdays," Jo informed me dreamily.

Why the hell would they like to do that? I wanted to yell. I still had yet to gather information on James, Sirius, Remus and Peter like I had wanted to. Maybe dig through some of their trunks…find out who the ever-mysterious Danielle was…

I grunted, annoyed, as Joanna led me to the tower and for the rest of the day, she escorted me to all of my classes that she had with me.

My syllabus with Joanna went as thus:

**Breakfast = Food = Happy Lily**

**Transfiguration:** Allow me to rant about _this_ particular professor later…

**Study Hall/Break:** Greatly appreciated, but not necessarily needed just after first period. Then again, it was better than the double Potions of Fridays.

**Arithmancy:** Numbers, numbers, numbers…I should have taken Divinations with Jo. It would have been an easy O on my grades. I mean, there's no way to prove that I didn't _really _see a giant marching band of marshmallows in my teacup.

**Potions:** It's kind of like cooking; I just have a real knack for it.

**Lunch = More Food = Again, Happy Lily**

**Herbology:** No, professor, I really don't mind the dirt underneath my nails. Really. Just as much as I wouldn't mind eating it.

**Charms:** No, professor, I am not a French prodigy here to become even more adept in the ways of magical charms. I apologise for confusing you because I kick serious arse in this class. I think I nearly gave the poor little man a heart attack when I was able to perform a NEWT level charm.

**Defence Against the Dark Arts: **They need a shorter title for this class. Seriously, it can be quite the mouthful. But they can't just say _DADA_, because there's always bound to be at least one idiot who reads it and says: "Dada? Like, a baby says dada when they're learning to talk?"

**Muggle Studies:** Just to keep up with the present times, technologies and such. I think everyone at Hogwarts is required to take at least one year so that they can blend in when they go out into the muggle world. But _come on, _I knew more than the professor did! It's _electricity,_ you nitwit!

**Ancient Runes:** Who really cares if I get the symbols for _agony _and _ecstasy _mixed up anyway? The Aztecs of ancient Central America aren't about to criticize me, so why should you?

**History of Magic: **Just—kill—me—now.

**Free Time: **Greatly needed to get homework or walking around the castle in hopes of memorising the place.

**Dinner = The Best Meal Ever = Ecstatic Lily**

Certain class times shifted from day to day between twenty minutes long to fourty minutes long, and then there was double Potions of Friday that was one hundred minutes of cramped spaces in the dungeons. Allow me to say what joy that was. We only had five minutes to get from class to class and meals were an hour long each day.

Since Jo was one of the few people who showed me around, I tried to stay close as possible with either her or Remus for as many subjects as I could. However, when it came to Transfiguration, my _first _ruddy class, McGonagall was assigning partners.

You wouldn't have to be a star in Divinations class to see where this was going.

I watched, slightly deterred, as Remus, Jo, Sirius and even Peter were paired off. I was getting rather nervous when it seemed like I would be the last person called.

"Li Evans and James Potter. Marla Robbins and Emma—"

DID EVERYBODY IN THE WHOLE COSMOS HAVE SOMETHING AGAINST ME? Stupid rotten karma. What in Merlin's name could I have done in a past lifetime to accumulate so much crap-tastic crap in _this _life?

Was _serial killer _my main profession or something?

My initial reaction was to twitch profusely until I felt like…well, not twitching anymore. Not looking at Potter, I sighed. Defeated, I \scooted my desk over to his as everybody in the class did the same.

I mean, with their own partners, not James.

Except me, of course.

Because karma holds a grudge, remember?

The assignments on the first day back were generally easy and laid back, but Transfiguration was my worst subject. We mainly just broke in the new textbooks while the professors did professor things that we lowly students aren't allowed to know about.

The assignment between James and me was to go over and outline the chapter on human to animal transformations from spells and hexes to animagi.

The two of us had started off just fine, (we hadn't spoken a word, but that was okay with me) but then James said he had some extra notes from a couple of summers go (why he would have notes on human to animal transformations from his third or fourth year I'll never know) and pulled out a folder and chucked it at me.

"I have the stuff memorised, just give it back to me at the end of class." He put his head on his arms and closed his eyes as if to just _sleep_ through his first class. He had been oddly civil. For James, at least. I can't say that I wasn't surprised and grateful.

I don't think he really knew what he was giving me, because after I flipped through the first couple of pages I began to see more occurring doodles and dodgy sketches. However, one name seemed to keep popping up everywhere.

Maybe it explained all of this pent up frustration he had…

I held up some dishevelled notes and said, quietly enough not to draw attention to the two of us, "Danny? Who's Danny? Old boyfriend?" I laughed lightly.

James eyes snapped open and his head shot up as he glared fiercely at me. Crikey he was scary when you pissed him off. "Danny is short for _Danielle,_" he gritted out.

Oh. _Merde._

Open mouth, insert foot.

Later, rinse, and repeat.

The Marauders groaned and slapped their hands to their heads or just dropped down on the desk completely.

Stupid, Lily, _stupid!_

I quickly tossed the folder back to his desk like it had burned me and scooted mine about half a metre backwards.

"_Oooookay_ then,"

Halfway through the work assignment I realised that this was the _third _girl who liked to be called by a _man's _name: Charlie, Jo, and Danny.

If those three were ever to get together, it was like a twisted version of _Femme Fatale_.

I made a mental note to avoid James for the next half of my life.

Stealthily, I pulled out one piece of parchment that I had tucked away in my robes when James wasn't looking. It was the first one that I had spotted Danny's name on along with a bit of notes from what looked like the rest of his friends. They had probably passed the parchment around during class while the teacher wasn't looking.

The writing was a real trip trying to figure out since they kept overlapping. There were names that I recognised and was finally able to learn their surnames. I alphabetized separate lists of the categorized words for me study more when I had time. The first list I made was of all the full names I discovered and came up with this:

_Black, Sirius_

_Lupin, Remus_

_Pettigrew, Peter_

Potter, James

Naturally, I already knew them all. Next there were strange words that I didn't quite understand their meaning that left me slightly peeved:

Moony = Remus (I remembered Sirius calling him this on the train)

_Padfoot _= Sirius (I remembered _James _calling him this on the train)

_Prongs_

_Shrieking Shack/The Shack_

_Snivellus/Snivelly?_

_Stag_

_Dog/stupid dog _(Dogs aren't stupid…)

_Wormtail_

Then finally there were those annoyingly frequent and reoccurring words and phrases that made me roll my eyes:

_Furry little problem _(an odd phrase, I'll admit)

_Girls/babes/ladies/women etc. etc…_(boys are such pigs)

_Hogsmead_

_Trouble _(of course)

_Madam Rosmerta _(often accompanied by adjectives like "hot", and "sexy"…)_Marauder/Marauding_

_Next month _(maybe they were girls pretending to be guys for the sake of Quidditch, too…?)

_Prank/pranks/pranking/already pranked/will prank etc. etc…_

_Quidditch_

And of course, the most annoyingly frequent two words circled in hearts and diamonds with initials intertwining, block letters, bubble letters, drawing attempts, and scribbles—good gravy, did he really have enough ink for all of this?

_Danielle _and _Danny_

I didn't have much time to piece everything together because the bell rang and I quickly stuffed my papers into my bag so that James wouldn't catch sight of them and ran to the library to finish my work with Joanna because I had neglected her for nearly the whole hour.

After all of my meals, classes and all of that rubbish of the like, I hit the bed hard and couldn't even be bothered to remove my socks.

The mystery of Danielle and the rest of the resident loons could wait until later.

* * *

I was seriously confused when I woke up the next morning and James refused to meet my eye. He had just rushed out of the dorm so fast the next morning, and was gone before you could do so much as say, "Quidditch cancelled", and I had absolutely _no idea _why. As I slowly but surely walked down the dorm room stairs, a familiar and friendly face greeted me with an ungodly happy tone for so early in the morning.

"Hello, Li," Jo said brightly.

I was able to yawn out, "Hey, Jo,"

"Care to walk with me to breakfast?" Joanna offered politely. I noticed that her teal splotches in her hair were gone only to be replaced by vividly dark violet highlights.

"Sure," I agreed. As if I would be able to find the place on my own…

We exited the portrait hole and I couldn't help but notice as some people stared and others giggled. I suppose that it went without saying that Joanna Channon was a bit of an oddball in Gryffindor.

Jo turned over to look at me as we walked down the corridor together, "Are you trying out for Quidditch?" she asked, probably knowing that tryouts were that night

I answered her, yet couldn't help but ask, "Yeah. Would you ever want to? I mean, if girls were allowed to try out?"

"No," Jo said lightly as she shook her head, "Quidditch is much too violent. My father was injured when he was younger and playing for just a minor team. Not many girls would have the bravery to try out for a wizard sport." She looked over to me, awaiting my opinion.

Insert gulp.

"But they should though," I said almost immediately in attempt to hide my nervousness.

Joanna shrugged.

"Perhaps you're right. My only friend Nigel in Ravenclaw plays Quidditch."

I wasn't sure if she meant she only had one friend on a Quidditch team, or if she only had one friend _period._

We were silent as we approached the tall doors leading into the Great Hall until Joanna grabbed my by the hand and sent me into a quick panic, and I almost yanked it back until I realised that Jo was only leading me over to the table.

"Would you like to meet my friend Nigel?" she asked me, "He sometimes keeps me company at the Gryffindor table,"

I didn't think I really got an option in this, because Jo kept pulling me towards the far end of the table anyways.

"Nigel," said Joanna, "This is Li Evans, my new Gryffindor friend,"

Nigel swallowed his food and said, "Hey, Li, nice to meet you,"

"Likewise," I answered, feeling awkward as I sat in-between the two. Truthfully, with the way the complimented each other, I had a funny "female's intuition"-type feeling that would end up married with, like, ten little minni Jo's and Nigel's running around.

With multi-coloured hair because their mum has a strange fetish for the bizarre.

I would have loved to play matchmaker, but I was afraid that it wouldn't be very "guy-like" or whatever.

We ate together and they mildly briefed me about all of my classes and little titbits of helpful information they had learned over the years.

I nodded along, not really paying attention. The parchment I had written up during Transfiguration felt like it was burning a hole in my pocket.

Maybe with this little thrall for mysteries and my nose-of-a-bloodhound for hidden scoops…maybe I should become a journalist.

…while managing my professional Quidditch career that I was being forced into. Right. Nevermind.

Suddenly, Sirius, James, Peter, and Remus laughed out loud at the end of the table and half of the hall's attention turned to them.

I finally asked Jo and Nigel, "What's up with those four?" I said, "Why are they so…weird?" I almost wanted to say clique-ish.

Oh yeah, I am the queen of subtle.

"Well," he said in a bemused tone, "They get in trouble at least every week," it didn't surprise me, "And I can't really say that I know any of them that well…they're pretty tight-knit,"

Still looking down the table, I asked them, "Do either of you know about a Danielle from Beauxbatons?"

There's the subtlety again that I am so renowned for…

They both frowned thoughtfully, "Can't say that I do," said Nigel.

"Me neither," Jo added, "It is a rather lovely name, I must say,"

"Why do you ask?"

Yeah, Lily, just why _do_ you ask? "I just heard her name in passing somewhere," I answered them slowly, "Thought she was famous or something,"

"My father works for the Ministry," said Nigel, looking curious as well, "He could probably pull some strings for you."

Ugh…the last thing I needed was to get the international magical government involved here.

"Um, no thanks," I said hastily, "Pass the water please, Jo?"

And that was the end of that. Phew.

As I was sitting at the far end of the table next to Nigel and Joanna and putting some bacon on my plate just as the owls swooped down to find their owners. I was only mildly surprised when a school owl stopped by me and dropped off a letter, hooted, and stole my bacon.

Stupid bird.

Speaking of birds, uncle John was supposed to have sent me my owl by know. Perhaps I should have reminded him in the last letter I sent him instead of just asking for chocolate…

…which he also never sent.

Taking one look at the handwriting, I ripped open the letter excitedly.

_Cher Beb,_

_Don't sell yourself so short, Billy-goat! You're a knockout and any guy on that whole blasted island would be lucky if you so much as looked their way! Pluck up some of that Lily confidence and ask a guy out!_

_Ditto for Quidditch! You know you're brilliant and to be able to play with a bunch of sweaty hunky guys on brooms…well, anyways, moving on! You better try out for lead chaser because you know it's your best position, and don't you DARE be modest! If you want to get some respect from the male population, don't be afraid to throw in a kick and a punch or two as well._

_The old crowd is glad to hear that you like Hogwarts! Beauxbatons is a real bore here; hope you're having more fun than we are. The dorm room girls miss you a lot, so maybe we could stop by your uncle's house during Christmas and it could be just like old times, you know? Or maybe I could swing by Hogwarts if we get out early. I think I've got a distant cousin or something over there._

_I got your snail-mail letter and your owl letter on the same day, actually. You really need to get yourself an owl._

_Didn't do a lot over the summer hols, just ate brownie batter and got fat, ha ha. _

Miss you lots, chere

_Charlie_

_P.S. The girls send their love, so send us some Hogwarts boys._

"Is that a letter from your girlfriend?" asked a curious and thin voice.

HA HA, GOOD ONE.

I looked up and saw a narrow faced blonde inches away staring at the letter intently, as if trying to read through the parchment.

"No, just a friend," I answered quickly leaning back and stuffing the letter into my robe pocket.

"I see," and that was all she before sauntering down to the other end of the table near the Sirius, Remus, Peter and James and squeezing herself into a seat.

"I hope that you will excuse Agnes," Jo said staring after her, "She's a bit…well, you know," she made some wacky motions near her head, "off,"

Nigel couldn't help snorting into his pumpkin juice, but nodded his head anyway.

* * *

That evening, just about half way through dinner, I ran back up to the seventh floor to get my broom and training robes, and then back _down _the seven stories and out unto the Quidditch locker rooms.

Everyone else was at dinner, meaning that I would be able to change into my clothes _alone._

Undressing reluctantly, I froze with my shirt poised half on, half off when I heard something that sounded like a door opening. With my head still in my shirt, I heard some one say,

"Hey, who's in here?"

It was James_._

_Shitshitshitshitshitshitshitshit._

I felt my face loose all colour and, reacting on impulse, (honestly!) I grabbed a thick boot and blindly flung it wildly at him in the doorway.

With a definite _clunk, _quickly being followed by the dull sound some one dropping to the floor after most _definitely_ getting hit, (I was a kick-arse chaser, of course my aim was spectacular!), I peaked through the neck-hole of my shirt. Judging by the welt, I had hit him right in the forehead.

I mean, I felt a bit bad…I was a size nine-and-a-half after all.

My eyes popped out of my sockets when I realised that, for one, he wasn't moving, and two, I had clearly knocked him out. Pulling my head through the shirt while simultaneously snatching the boot off the floor, I made a run for the door. **[A/N: 'floor', 'door', ha ha, rhymes, __] **

I hid behind the stands as the rest of the players came down from the castle and into the locker rooms where I had just been and nervously awaited them to find James. I had made it out just in the nick of time.

I held my breath until, minutes later, everyone walked out, several supporting a rather uncoordinated James.

"I'm telling you! Some punk knocked me out with a _boot!_"

"Will you still be able to help out with try outs?" Sirius asked from underneath his shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," He mumbled back, barely audible from where I was hiding behind the stands.

Remus, who was also helping James walk out, just spotted me, after having forcibly attempted to make it seem as though I had just come from the castle.

"Hey, Li!" He called out, waving a hand.

"Hi, Remus," I waved back, looking innocent as ever. Bwa ha ha…no one suspects a thing from the new kid.

* * *

"YOU'RE GOING THE WRONG WAY, CALVERT! IT'S THE _OTHER _GOAL POSTS!" Sirius shook his head and turned to his grounded friends Remus and James. "I can't say we've got the best lot to look at this year,"

James mumbled his agreement, still holding his icepack to his head.

"I don't know, guys," Remus intervened politely, "I believe that Li Evans is doing quite a nice job," He motioned towards the sky as the quaffle was knocked out of Calvert's hands "See?" he looked back at them.

James mumbled incoherencies, and Sirius nodded his head in agreement with Remus.

Meanwhile, up in the air, I was having the time of my life. Dodging bludgers, sweeping by idiotic players…life was good! For the most part, that is. I scored again and I heard an exasperated sigh from the ground.

"Would somebody _please _stop Evans?" Sirius called from the ground. "Hey, I have an idea!" He said suddenly, ("And here comes the apocalypse," muttered Remus), "Everybody _STOP!_" Naturally, everyone on the field did as they were told. "Blackwell," he pointed to a thick blurry seventh year, "you're a ball-hog, get off the field," he made a motion that basically meant 'hit the showers'.

Sending an impolite hand gesture at Sirius, he landed and sulked off.

"Now, Jamsie-dear, get your fat arse on that broom of yours and give Evans a challenge!" He patted his friend on the back as I nearly fell off my broomstick, suddenly beginning to lose my confidence.

Unenthusiastic about the whole idea, (and several death threats later), James flew up next to me, carrying the quaffle.

"You're ball," he said steadily, glaring at me like I was the sum of all his problems.

I grinned. Finally feeling a spark of long awaited competition in my veins, I seized the ball and, without any notice, our game started.

James was an excellent flyer; I couldn't help but notice and be impressed. He tended to fly up from underneath, whereas I usually preferred to close in from overhead. He slammed his body into mine and knocked the Quaffle clear out of my hands. Clearly, he was a bit more of a difficult opponent compared to the amateurs that I had been clowning around with earlier.

Since there was no bloody way in hell I was going to let him get away, I soared after him and dropped straight down in front of him in a complete vertical line and punched the red ball out of his hands and held it in my own.

This sort of thing continuing for fifteen minutes, neither of us having scored. The rest of the players had dropped off to the ground for a water break, but both James and myself would have absolutely _none _of that. Once, James had even sharply knocked me into the goalposts because I had been so closed to scoring.

Not once did we utter a single word to each other.

On the ground Sirius consulted with Remus.

"It looks like they've been playing together ages before Hogwarts," he said thoughtfully.

"Do you think we should stop them?" Remus asked as he took a swig of water.

"Nah, they'll stop eventually when they can't see where they're going, or one of them crashes into the other, or they—"

"_Sirius_," said Remus.

"Alright, _fine, _Moony, ruin everyone's entertainment," He pointed to those trying out, "OY, YOU ROGUISH FIENDS! TRY OUTS ARE OVER!"

I stopped almost immediately, wanting to regroup with the players as we were told to, but _James _carried on anyway and scored the first goal.

"That's not fair!" I exclaimed furiously at his triumphant look, "He said it was over!"

"I didn't hear anything," he said moodily.

"You heard quite clear, _Potter!_" I spat out his name vehemently.

He turned his broom on me, "And if I didn't…?" He said it so darkly that I personally had to grip onto my broomstick in fear of falling off out of lack of sudden nerves.

"Jaaaaaaaaaaaaaames!" Sirius sang, "Come _on!_"

Glaring at me for the last time, James flew down as I agilely, but still riveted, followed. Landing five feet next to him, I brushed off my robes as Sirius and Remus came to greet me.

"Evans!" said Sirius throwing his arms around me as if I were the answer to all of their prayers.

Which I so totally was.

"Welcome to the team," Remus grinned.

**:-****:  
****-:TBC:-**

**Hullo again! Aren't you impressed by my uber quick-ish update?!**

***silence***

**Har, har…cheers, you bummy lot**

**Gold stars if anyone can guess who _Jo _and_ Nigel _are! *grins***

**French Lesson of the Day:**

**Cher/chere =** Dear (or expensive…)

**Fackyews**

**If she's going to be sleeping in the same room as the guys, how are they not going to notice her real gender?**

Easy—she's just not going to tell them ^__^

**Dude—what about the Marauder's Map!?!?!? Won't they discover Lily's identity!?!**

_Dude_—maybe they haven't made the Marauder's Map yet? Or _maybe _it's part of the plot line…?

**Wow! Thanks for teaching me to curse in French!**

No problem. ¬_¬

**What do you do when you're not updating?**

Stare at my online stats and watch the numbers go down because lack up updating and hack into classified government files regarding the U.S. AREA 51.

**Dude—Sirius is sooooo hott.**

Well, _duh_

Love, Liebling!


	6. Danielle's Letter

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **1 July 2006  
**Chapter Six  
"Danielle's Letter"**

**:-****:**

I hade succeeded in surviving _two whole weeks _at Hogwarts. I better receive good karma for this. Stupid arse owes me, anyways…

My uncle, indeed eventually wrote me when heard about my successful tryouts "through the Hogwarts' parents' grapevine" or something rather. More importantly, his letter was also accompanied by a rather large box of chocolates that I was pleased to devour once I was alone in the comfort of my dorm.

Remus had, after having laughed profusely at my spectacular blunder with James in Transfiguration, comforted me and even offered me a Chocolate Frog. I have_ no idea _where he got it. He just sort of pulled it out of nowhere and started to hand me candy. Later, I asked him if he had anymore and _BAM _he pulls out another six. The boy is like a walking vending machine full of magical, and sometimes dangerous, candies.

I'm not complaining or anything, believe me. He's a rather nifty friend to have around, you know?

Remus said that he would attempt to smooth things over with James while they were at Hogsmeade together with the rest of the group.

"Group?" I repeated.

"Sirius, James, Peter and myself," he told me.

Finally, I said exasperated, "Do you guys to _everything _together?"

He shrugged me off with a sly grin, "It's a Marauder thing,"

Marauder? Ha, what a funny word. As a matter of fact, I think I've heard it before—Great Scott, _MARAUDER!_ AAGH! It was a word from my list! I nearly tripped over my feet with this strange excitement as Remus walked down the hall. I pulled out the old parchment from out of my pocket and wrote:

Subjects: _Remus Lupin (Moony), Sirius Black (Padfoot), Peter Pettigrew, and James Potter…_have formed a fraternity club of some sorts called the Marauders!

_Marauders _was underlined numerous times out of my excitement. All right, so this meant that my four dorm-mates were in some club and…hey! Everyone was in a club and I wasn't! That was totally mean and socially excluding! Stupid jerks!

Moodily, I retired for the evening with thoughts of Hogsmeade running through my mind as I slept.

Which wasn't long.

I was brutally awoken at the crack of dawn by Sirius practically attacking me and throwing me off of my bed. I mean, in all seriousness, the _sun _was still asleep, so why wasn't I? Gaah!

"Time for the season's first Gryffindor Quidditch practice!" he shrilly sang at the top of his bloody lungs as he went through the entire boys' dorm in search of his teammates. "Practice makes perfect, therefore we must practice, practice, practice if we want to beat the slimy Slytherin scum! Woohoo!"

"He was never this energetic before he became captain," Remus mumbled. I had almost forgotten that he was the team manager. "Really wish that he hadn't changed…"

I had a cramp in my side and I turned under the covers and snuggled deeply into my pillow until Sirius came back and whipped them off my body.

I muttered something in Danish—a funny little phrase that I had picked up from a friend of a friend when I was the Netherlands on vacation several years ago. I'm not quite sure what it meant…but it had sounded awfully rude when Cheryl's cousin Whatsername had yelled it at her older brother…

"Jeez, no need to go all Spanish on us,"

Mumble grumble, grumble mumble…

I could here everyone getting ready, even Remus, and I attempted to stretch out that stitch in my side until the drawings around my bed were thrown back once again.

"Come on, Evans—OOMPH, _DAMN IT!_"

I really hadn't meant to kick James Potter in the stomach, honestly. He had just reached out and grabbed my side that must've been sore from sleeping on it funny. My legs just sort of spazzed out erratically and nailed him right in the abdomen.

"Sorry!" I gushed, suddenly wide-awake, but James grunted and pushed me backwards off the bed into a tangle of limbs on the floor wrapped around the torn drapery. He gnarled something particularly nasty under his breath.

Well, I _did _apologise to say in the least…

"You're mad, Evans!" He snapped, "I don't know what the bloody hell Sirius was thinking when he let such a psycho on a team!"

I was tempted to kick him again, this time only lower, but I feigned ignorance and continued to look for my Quidditch practice clothes in my trunk.

"I don't know what the hell your problem is," he glowered, still clutching his side. I suppose he was still a bit…displeased…still after the Transfiguration incident, "But I am so f—" I closed my ears to this little bit, "—ing tired of dealing with all of this shit you seem to be handing out like candy!" Potter slammed the door.

Now that was a bit harsh. More than a bit, actually. I was torn between continuing to stand there, stunned or breaking out into tears. I chose the former.

A quarter of an hour later, I found myself down on the Quidditch pitch for the second time in the two weeks that I had been at Hogwarts. James was at the far end of the team line, and me on the other.

I didn't look at him or anywhere in his direction. In fact, I was pretty darn sure that my eyes had been seared shut and I was close to falling asleep on my feet. One of the teammates nudged me as Sirius walked by in a rather long monologue about the love of Quidditch or something.

"Twenty laps, people!" he cried out. Being Quidditch captain must've given him a mad sense of power.

"Are you _mental?_" only I had responded, everyone else had rolled their eyes, "It's bloody well six in the morning!"

The team turned to see who dared to challenge their beloved(?) captain who slowly turned on heel and marched over to me.

"Evans," he said, proudly, and with an oddly straight face, "I…am the captain. I am King of Quidditch, this pitch is my kingdom and my word is law,"

What an ego trip, I noticed. When there weren't any girls around to distract him, he was like an evil dictator with a broom in one hand and a club in the other. Very medieval.

"When I say jump, you say, 'how high?' So j_ump_,"

"Screw you," I yawned.

He coughed, "Let's try this again. When I say run, you say, 'how far?' _Run,_"

"Go to hell," I am just that _darn_ adorable in the morning. And to think that just two weeks ago I had trouble forming sentences around him.

"Well," Sirius huffed as the rest of the team tittered amusedly, "It seems that Mr. Evans here is a smart arse. I am vaguely foreseeing problems with this,"

Me? A smart arse? Perish the thought! I leaned my forehead against my broom and muttered out, "I'm sure the Divinations teacher will be delighted to hear all about it," I was awfully witty at six-something rather in the morning…

"On your brooms, team! Evans has just earned everyone an extra twenty minutes of practice!" It's hard to believe that Sirius was so serious about Quidditch.

Pun.

Everyone groaned.

"But that'll run into breakfast!" someone complained.

Oops.

"Thanks a lot, Evans," someone else hissed.

Wow, am I just amazing at making new friends or what?

An hour and twenty minutes later, I made the excuse for having to re-lace my boots outside of the locker room while everyone else showered for breakfast.

It looked like I was going to miss breakfast in order to get a more _private _shower.

My stomach grumbled.

Greeeeat.

* * *

Classes passed by uneventfully. Well, actually, there was this funny incident in Transfiguration with a canary…but that's a story for another time.

Eagerly, I waited in the common room for Joanna who would be showing me around Hogsmeade while Remus tried to smooth things over with Potter. Hmph. Fat chance at that, I say.

Jo (with electric blue curls in her hair) and I met Nigel outside on the grounds where everyone was climbing into the horseless carriages. In our carriage, however, there already was an occupant.

"Hello, Severus," Nigel said coolly.

"Lovegood," he replied with the same tone.

I nearly tripped on the step. _Severus Snape_ was the person the _Marauders _(the stupid fraternity boys) had warned me about on the train ride. He was leaning against the window and watching me in the doorway like he had half-expected us to show up before I even knew what carriage I would have chosen.

"Hullo!" Jo said brightly, ignoring the high amount of tension. She was cool like that, I guess.

Both boys' eyes flashed over to her as she took her seat. I attempted to quickly scramble to the other side next to Nigel before Jo, but alas, Karma still hated me.

I was sitting next to Severus Snape.

Nigel and Jo were talking cordially between themselves and I was too afraid to look anywhere but out the window. I could feel Snape's eyes boring into the side of my head just like they had when we first met outside of the loo two weeks ago. I fiddled with the hem of my sleeves nervously. I wished that Jo or Nigel could have sensed my discomfort and brought me into their private conversation.

After ten rather awkward minutes next to this creepy Slytherin fellow, I could see the town approaching through the window and I sighed in relief.

"Ah, we're here!" said Jo as Nigel crawled out before of her. He helped her off the carriage step like a real gentleman and reminded me of how much I wished a guy would do that for me…

I sighed again, but this time in defeat and slowly followed them out the carriage until I heard a voice behind me whisper:

"_I know what you are,_"

If only I could have seen my face that very second. I tumbled out of the carriage and face-planted into the ground. Getting back up, I ignored Joanna and Nigel asking me if I was alright and ran all the way to the village on my own and didn't stop until I nearly ran into a girl.

"Sorry," I said, hurriedly and attempted to keep going.

"Li Evans!" she said, grabbing my arm in an iron grip and pulled me back.

I turned around—not that I really had an option, mind you—and saw a strangely familiar face.

"Oh, hi, um…Angie?"

"Agnes," she corrected, not deterred and throwing her blonde curls back over her shoulder, "How are you liking Hogwarts so far?" Agnes had looped an arm through mine and was leading me away. Again, I didn't really get an option or opinion in this.

"It's…nice," I said delicately, "Are you, um, having a nice day?"

"The absolute _best,"_ she told me heartily, "Would you like to buy me a drink at the Three Broomsticks?"

The Whoseamawhatsits now?

"Actually," I said, pulling my arm free, "I've…gotta go check something,"

I had more important things to worry about. For one, _Severus Snape, _a boy I had only seen _twice _"knew what I was". He had said _what, _not _who._ Meaning that I was in a whole truckload of trouble. And second, I think a girl was hitting me on.

"Oh," Agnes looked disappointed, "Would you like me to come with you?"

"No, no, I've got it," I said almost too quickly, "Thank you anyways. Bye now!"

I ran even faster than I when I had run away from Snape and the carriage. That stitch in my side had returned and I slowed my pace to knead it out of my right side. I went past a place called_ Zonko's _where I saw the Marauders out marauding or doing whatever Marauders did through the front window. Then there was a place called the Hog's Head that sounded absolutely appealing.

Not.

I felt bad for abandoning Jo and Nigel like I had…but I could already sense the danger of the situation. I couldn't find them without running into Agnes again who would be looking to pester me into buying her a drink or something. I couldn't hang out with Remus either, because he had taking some blood oath or some pledge of allegiance to these bloody Marauder folks. And James Potter was already royally pissed off at me.

"Stupid Potter," I muttered to myself, passing an alley. He was always ruining everything.

"Excuse me," said a heavily accented voice from the alleyway.

I leapt out of my skin and yelped loudly in pain when I knocked over a large dustbin.

"_Désolé!" _a face appeared out of the shadows revealing sky-blue eyes and dark chocolate brown hair, "Did you say…Potter?" She helped me to my feet, "_James_ Potter?"

I could recognise that accent anywhere…this woman was from the east of France.

Beauxbatons.

I had wondered why I had never seen her before; she looked about my age.

"_Oui," _was my immediate answer. The woman looked surprised by my response, _"Quoi?_"

"_Vous parlez francais?"_

"_Mais oui," _Of course, I answered, "_Je suis d'Arques," _I'm from Arques. Not technically true, since I had moved away from Arques over the summer, but for argument's sake, I lived in France.

It was felt wonderful being able to converse with someone in French.

"_Ah! C'est très beau là! __Mais, Je suis ici pour chercher James," _she told me that Arques was a lovely place and that she was looking for James.

I wanted to laugh at the thought of someone—a _girl _no less—actually wanting to be in the same company as James. However, I was not one to judge (poor girl must have been delusional), I nodded and pointed up the street, "He's just up the road a bit," I said, slipping out of my second language on accident, "I can go get him for—"

"Ah, _non merci," _she said, "I just…would yoo mind…to give zis to 'im? _S'il vous plaît?" _I had just noticed the piece of paper she had been twisting between her hands nervously. It had many creases on its surface that showed she had been twisting it for a while.

"Yes, of course," I said, taking the envelope she held out to me.

"_Merci," _she said and turned to leave. On afterthought, she turned back to face me, "_Comment vous appellez-vous?"_

"_Je m'appelle Li,"_ I introduced myself. My second name had been quite an adaptation at school… "_Et vous?_"

The young woman smiled at me and said, "_Je m'appelle Danielle. Enchanter, Li, et au revoir," _she waved goodbye to me politely as she apparated away, leaving me stunned.

I had just met Danielle.

_James' _Danielle.

Oh…my…giddy…aunt.

* * *

I had found a nice little restaurant/café-type place called the Three Broomsticks that Agnes had mentioned and I ordered myself a tall glass of Butterbeer.

I looked at the envelope Danielle had given me, temptation screaming at me to open it and just take a _small _little peak inside. James would never notice, right?

Right.

There were plenty of faded parchment envelopes that I could use to replace the old one, right?

Right.

Therefore, I would finally be able to solve the mystery between James and Danielle and no one would know but me, right?

Right.

Truthfully, I was going to open Danielle's letter to James, and as much as I would love to say that it was the voice of reason (who'd been on vacation recently) that told me not to open it would be lying. My finger had barely touched the seal when I heard someone say,

"There you are, Li!" It was Joanna and Nigel who had both found me in the back of the room, "We've been awfully worried about you,"

"Is everything alright?" Nigel asked.

"Y-yes," I breathed, "Just had to fire-call somebody," I lied and pocketed the letter, hoping that neither saw, "Shall we go, um, somewhere…?" I had half a mind to forget about that damn envelope.

For the rest of the Hogsmeade trip, there was no Agnes, no Snape, and no James Potter to give the letter to.

* * *

It was that night when Sirius, Remus, Peter and James were all crowded around in the common room, when I was faced with the dilemma with what to do with Danielle's Letter.

_Again._

Not the capital _L_—it was just _that _big.

It sat there, innocently, across from me on my bed.

_Danielle's Letter._

I had studied the surface of the envelope like it was the world's greatest marvel. It was a simple four by six sachet, the colour of sand, felt heavy enough to be holding at least two scrolls of parchment, and had _James Potter _in simple neat cursive on the front. There was no wax seal, or personal emblem on any side of it.

_Why _couldn't I open the damn thing?

"Hey, Li?" I heard Remus say through my drawings, "We've got practice right after dinner so bring your stuff to the Great Hall, okay?"

"Sure," I called out, my eyes not leaving the envelope still.

God, I was so nosy.

Suddenly, I grimaced as a pain shot out of my right side of my abdomen. I must've been hungrier than I thought. I had been having that pain all day long and was tempted to go to Madam Pomfrey.

Temptation was just as bad as Karma.

All of the students, including the Gryffindor Quidditch players, had come and gone to the Great Hall and I was soon to follow.

I placed the unopened envelope on James' nightstand.

* * *

I was frustrated, to say in the least, that I had _two _Quidditch practices in _one _measly little day. How was I supposed to do all of my homework? I _have _(or rather, _had_) a life of my own, thank you!

Sirius had decided to skip the "I love Quidditch more than you do," monologue and this time when he said "Twenty laps" I proudly kept my mouth shut.

"Evans, I want you, James, and Victor to practice passing over near the far stands,"

I never really understood why I was the only one being called by their surname. Maybe I was the outsider.

Sighing—I sigh a lot, have you noticed?—I flew the other end of the pitch with Potter and Bishop to do some chaser exercises.

It bothered me that in just an hour James Potter would be reading Danielle's Letter. She seemed like such a nice, if not slightly flustered, person and I couldn't help but wonder—

"_Keep up, Evans! You're holding us up!_"

—how such an arsehole like James won her over.

I gripped my broom tightly and opened my mouth to snarl out something in his general direction, but something in my stomach wrenched again painfully and I doubled over on my broom, missing the quaffle that Victor Bishop passed my way.

It happened again and this time I nearly flew into the stands. It felt like someone was squeezing a particularly needed organ.

Maybe the liver or something?

Another painful churl nearly sent me into the commentator's box.

It didn't fully register in my mind that if I were to fall, I just might be killed. Because, of course, the only thing I was thinking at the time was: _OH MY GOD I NEVER FINISHED MY TRANSFIGURATION HOMEWORK!_ My mind has strange ways of avoiding the severity of certain situations…

The strange feeling in my abdomen was turning into a painful sensation and I couldn't help but let out another gasp as I attempted to land. The ground was so…far…away…I suddenly felt dizzy as my vision swarmed.

"Evans, are you all right?" Sirius yelled from another end of the field.

"Uugghh…"

_Translation: _No, I do not feel well, you thickheaded no-nothing twit. Does it _look like _I'm all right? I'm practically falling off my broom here!

Blimey O'Reily, I _was _falling off my broom! I wanted to scream for help while I also tried to angle myself towards the ground so that I could steer and land safely but this ruddy pain in my side made me want to twist, turn, and churl my stomach in the most imaginative and creative ways that I highly doubted were possible. But my pride would not allow me to ask for help.

"DAMN IT, WOULD SOMEBODY HELP ME?"

Screw that.

A sudden updraft of the strong winds tipped my broom easily because I had let go of the handle to clutch my stomach. I tumbled gracelessly to the ground, nearly snapping my broom, and the team landed and rushed to my side.

I resisted saying the ever popular "I've fallen and I can't get up" phrase. Tempting, but not the most appropriate time.

Jeebes, they must have been cramps for hell or something. I was writhing out in pain and agony on the grass, biting my tongue so I didn't say something ridiculous.

"Good gravy, just start digging my grave already and tell my bloody uncle that it was all his fault!"

Again, too late for that, I suppose.

"What the hell is wrong with you, Evans?"

How nice of you, Sirius.

"He's possessed!"

Again, I love the concern for my well being that was shown.

"Feels like…" I tried to think of something tangible to be used to describe my current situation while digging my hands into my right side as hard as possible, "Cornish Pixies are having a field day in my intestines. On a sugar-high." I was able to gasp out and pulled myself up to my knees and curled over, "Or a dozen hippogriffs learning the Electric Slide in combat boots. Take your bloody pick."

"What's an electric slide…?"

"Come on, he's faking it," A foot pushed me lightly back to the ground and I rolled on my back like a turtle that rocked back and forth, stuck and clearly annoyed.

Remind me to kill James when I have an extra moment and functioning organs later, okay?

"No, I really think that something's wrong with him," My eyes were closed, but I heard Remus say so thoughtfully.

"Then could we please stop staring at me and actually _do _something?" I yelled.

It was true. The six other team members, and Remus the manager, were circling me as I squirmed and writhed like a pathetic fish out of water, just pointing and talking amiably amongst themselves. If I could stand I would _so_ make them eat bludgers and ask them to tell me how it feels.

James would get two because he kicked me and said that I was faking it.

"Um…" was the universal response I heard from around me.

I was surrounded by idiots.

"For the love of—_fine," _I heard James huff, annoyed. I peaked open my eyes to see James conjure a stretcher. "Help me roll him on,"

I grunted. I felt like a molested log as hands placed themselves all over me and rolled me onto the white stretcher. Normally, incredibly cute men's hands all over me wouldn't bother me too much. But _now? _With my groaning and twitching of pain and agony? Not so much…

The stretcher suddenly picked up and I, again, curled onto my side and started shaking. I hadn't realised how sweaty and feverish I was. I had thought that it was just regular sweat from practice.

Well this had turned out to be a wonderful idea: "Sure, John! I have _absolutely no problem _moving to another country and transferring to a school where I have _no friends whatsoever! _And _of course _it's no problem pretending to be a boy just so I can play Quidditch!"

Don't I have a _shred _of decent Karma in me?

"Well, um, see you guys later!" Sirius called out. I suddenly realised that it was James' wand that was being used to keep the stretcher aloft. "We've got another fourty minutes of practice left!"

I was alone.

With James Potter.

_Merde._

**:-****:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N: **

**A/N: Wow, your reviews make me all warm and fuzzy inside ^_^ More warm and fuzzy feelings often come from nice long reviews that contribute to quicker updates…:coughcough: Actually, umm, I'm going to be away for a month s0o0o…:looks away sheepishly: But if it makes you feel any better, I slaved away half of the night to get this posted by morning.**

**Fackyews**

**Where on earth do you come up with Lily's crazy personality?**

Oh, how I like this question ^__^ I tend to put a fair bit of my personality into the main characters which is why I decided to switch this story over to first person. It's a lot more personal and I can allow myself to rant through Lily. I tend to have the urge to write "omg" or "lol" a lot, however…

**So who _are _Joanna Channon and Nigel…um, Nigel…?**

Jo and Nigel are, indeed, the future _Mr. and Mrs. Lovegood! _Mystery solved!

**Thoughts to Ponder Why Luna is Away:**

What's wrong with Lily?  
What did Danielle's note say?  
How come Lily never met Danielle at Beauxbatons?  
Why is James such an asshole?  
Where is Lily's owl that her uncle promised her??

Love, Liebling!


	7. Big Mouths and Big Hearts

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **30 September 2006  
**Chapter Seven  
**"**Big Mouths and Big Hearts"**

**:-:**

I honestly felt like that woman from _Rosemary's Baby. _You know, that muggle movie where this woman is carrying the spawn of Satan in her womb? That's what it felt like: some demon playing jump rope with my intestines or beating them like they were rogue bludgers.

Not fun at all, allow me to just say so.

The trip to the Hospital Wing with James would have probably gone a lot better if I didn't find the need to open my big mouth out of curiosity.

"Did…did you get the letter?" I asked him in a quiet and strained voice.

"What letter?"

"The one from…" I swallowed, "Danielle?"

"Yeah," he answered after a moment's hesitation, "I did,"

Silence.

Still silence.

Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiilence.

Oh, for the love of—_wasn't he going to elaborate?_

"Sooo…you're okay now, right?" I grunted out. The pain was excruciating and I couldn't help but harbour thoughts of my dying. They weren't very encouraging thoughts, but they helped keep my head fairly level, "Because quite frankly I don't really want to deal with your PMS-ing attitude right now considering I'm the one who's probably going to die sooner."

Sort of.

I couldn't see if James had regarded me with a sneer or smile because my nose was still buried in the stretcher

"It's none of your business, Evans,"

Well, _fine, _see if I care, I wanted to say. But the sad thing was that I _did _care. And I wanted to know what happened. I _wanted _to know what that bleeding letter said! Meaning that I was going to have to take things into my own hands if people weren't going to be straight with me.

Nothing else was spoken for the rest of the trip to the hospital wing unless you want to count James snorting in amusement as he dumped me unceremoniously on a bed and watching me squirm. Luckily, almost immediately Madam Pomfrey bustled over and gave me a potion to mollify my pain temporarily while she ran some tests.

"Tell it to me straight, Doc," I said dramatically once she re-entered the room, "I'm dying aren't I?"

Madam Pomfrey rolled her eyes, not amused, "Well, Mr. Evans," she said, returning to my bedside and pulling a rather vile looking potion out of her pocket as she did so, "It appears that you have appendicitis,"

Oh just _kill me now, _I groaned.

**(A/N: Har har, and you lot thought it was just cramps!)**

* * *

The potion knocked me out for at least six hours; definitely well past curfew and I wondered if anyone noticed I was gone.

As it turned out, I didn't need to get surgery like the muggles do, but it was just a rather complex charm with a certain series of potions jammed down my unconscious throat that was needed and before I knew it, I was staring at my little troublemaker of an organ in a small jar.

How appealing, right?

Madam Pomfrey said I could even keep it if I wanted to. I considered sending it to my uncle, actually…

The team came by the next day once they realised that I never returned to the dorms. They had given me mostly chocolate—not that it was as good as French chocolate, mind you—and even a get well soon card that they all signed even though I would be released the next day.

"Hey, Li, what the hell is this?" Sirius held up the jar on my nightstand and I couldn't help but laugh, "It looks like something that snuck out of Slughorn's office,"

"Or some kind of warped lima bean," said Joseph Daniels, the other beater besides Sirius, as he took the jar from Sirius for a closer inspection.

"That's my appendix," I told them, snorting, and taking the jar away from the less-than-nimble hands of Joseph, "So let's _not _toss it around like a quaffle. Especially considering all the grief this little bugger gave me,"

"So you _weren't _faking it, then?" asked Sirius suspiciously, probably thinking that I had just feigning it all along so I could get out of practice.

I deadpanned, "If you sincerely mean that I think I'm going to make you eat it,"

"My dad had appendicitis," said Maud Brooks, the Gryffindor keeper, "Do you have a scar or something?"

"No, I think they pulled it out through my nose or something," I said because I really don't know how they removed the organ. I had checked my lower hips several times looking for a mark of any form but found none whatsoever.

"REALLY?" said Jordan McClain, our seeker. He was a third year I think and obviously rather gullible. Brilliant flyer, despite it all though.

"Oh, yes," I nodded dramatically, "Most definitely."

"Your potion, Mr. Evans," said Madam Pomfrey, suddenly appearing at my bedside. As she handed me the vile concoction, I could see the team cringe and bite back their "Eww"'s, but that didn't stop Sirius from saying:

"Sweet Merlin, it looks like something out of my little cousins _Easy-Bake _oven!"

I was fairly surprised that Sirius knew what an Easy-Bake oven actually _was._

"Nymphadora's?" Remus asked, with the corner of his mouth curling at the thought of whatever had been produced from her Easy-Bake.

Sirius nodded solemnly.

"Well _I'm _the one that has to actually _ingest _it," I said almost abrasively, cringing at the thought of doing so, "Cheers, all," I pursed my lips and held my nose as I downed it all in one gulp, trying to ignore the team saying things like "gross", "ew", "uuuughh,"…the whole nine yards.

Actually, it didn't really taste the bad. Kind of like a strange fruit salad mixed in ranch dressing. With crunchy peanut butter.

"How much work did I miss?" I asked eventually.

"Not much," Remus admitted, "At least, nothing important which is a relief. Especially since James hasn't been able to focus in his classes lately,"

Sirius laughed, "James doesn't need to study considering he's practically a genius already and could put McGonagall to shame one day,"

I couldn't help but give him a flat 'yeah, right' look.

"No, seriously!" he said and then paused for a moment before suddenly yelling, "PUN!" the team groaned but Sirius continued on, unabashed, "James couldn't been moved up a grade when we were twelve but he decided not to because he wanted to stick with his favourite maties,"

"Really?" This surprised me. Surely someone as thick as James couldn't be _that _smart. Even the team seemed genuinely shocked to learn this about their lead chaser. I guess we still had a lot to learn about James Potter and all the secrets that came with him.

I really wish I had known what I was getting into.

* * *

Meanwhile, once I returned to class, I had too many of my own problems to worry about to be too bent up over James' and their names were _Agnes _and _Snape._ Both of whom I avoided like the bloody plague. I was usually able to find a corner desk in the back of the classes, protected by Joanna, Remus and/or Nigel. I was rather worried when I didn't see Snape at some meals and even _more _worried when Agnes sensed that I had walked into the same room as her…

I had watched carefully for several days the actions of the professors to see if they treated me any differently. I had figured that Snape would have gone to _someone_, but I guess I was just the laughing stock of Slytherin.

I could live with that as long as they didn't tell the teachers.

During one boring day in potions class, I was tempted to write to my uncle but then I thought—_let him squirm_. He can wonder and worry all he wants. I did, however, write to Charlotte.

_Cher Charlie,_

_How're the girls? Anatolia chew you out yet for stealing those heels over the summer? Is Cheryl doing better in Charms? You know I worry about my girls._

_I'm afraid that I don't have a lot of time for small talk, because I need to get right down to the point. Not that I don't love writing to you guys and hearing how you're doing, but this letter serves as another super-secret ulterior motive:_

_I need to know if there is a girl named Danielle in our—sorry, I guess now it's just _your _class. I don't know what she looks like, just that she's around our age—and please, please, _please _do not ask why—it's very important that you find out everything there is to know about her._

_Again: please?_

_You know you've always been my favourite roomie ever and I'll give you an awesome Christmas gift if you do!_

_Love,_

_Lily_

I could only wait for Charlotte to write back to me with some titbit of information to give me a new lead. All of my luck rested on my best friend's shoulders.

Well, crap.

* * *

Our first match we were scheduled to play in was against Hufflepuff exactly one week before Halloween in eight days. Sirius had said that even though Hufflepuff wasn't a spectacular team last year, they had gotten a new keeper and he wanted the chasers—me, James, and Victor Bishop—to work slightly harder than the rest of the team.

Greeeat.

The three of us had arrived at the pitch half an hour sooner before the rest of the team with Sirius to practice our position rotating strategy. Since, as it were, I was left-handed and the only opening on the team had been right wing, Sirius had come up with a weaving-like pattern to be flown down the pitch so that the three of us would be switching spots constantly. Sirius hoped that it would confuse the opposing team more, even if it required _a lot _of more craftier manoeuvring, speed, and endurance.

Victor and I were doing just swell but, sweet Merlin, James could not have been worse. First of all, he showed up _late_ to _every single practice, _causing Sirius to gripe about it every given chance. Next, once James finally decided to grace us with his lovely charming presence, Sirius would lecture him about dedication. Then, they would bicker and squabble for about ten minutes while the team just played broom tag or something of the sorts.

I had no doubt in my mind that it was because of that _blasted letter_ from Danielle that I hadn't been able to read.

We were about an hour into the practice and I watched as James lagged behind. Usually, he liked to play the lead chaser, but he had hardly been rotating through the pattern. Just to make sure that it wasn't some James Impostor Robot sent in by the Slytherin team or something, I threw James the quaffle and watched, groaning, as he fumbled with the red ball before dropping it completely. The team stopped all of their activities to sit still and watch the quaffle rapidly fall to the ground with a muffled _dnnck._ Everyone stared at James, who hadn't bothered to chase after it but stared at the ball with a look of snide distaste.

The team didn't move or even say anything at all. Therefore I decided that _I_ should.

"What in the name of Merlin's cracker box is wrong with you, Potter?" I shouted out as we all began to land, "You've been like a sack of potatoes on that broomstick for the past month!"

He glared. Quite frankly, I was afraid his face would freeze like that eventually. "Maybe I just don't feel like playing right now," he snapped.

I glowered, "Well that's too damn bad because _we," _I motioned to the team, _"do!"_

James swung a leg over his broom once he landed and held it deftly in his right hand, "Quidditch can go to hell for all I care," he snarled viciously.

The team gasped, and Sirius came tumbling off his broom, but that was the last straw for me. When my feet touched the ground, I tossed my broom aside and marched up to the little prick and gave him a real what-for.

"This team has worked too ridiculously hard for the past six weeks to get ready for this season, you…you—you _asshole! _We have all sacrificed too much like our study halls or homework hour after dinner—" and my femininity for god's sake! "—to have it all screwed over by someone who _just doesn't feel like playing! _That's not fair to the rest of us!"

The team was murmuring in agreement.

"And I will not sit by, watching idly as you f—" I almost never curse…really "—up everything for the team!"

James' face grew red with fury and for a moment I thought he would attack me or at least start yelling, but instead he walked off the pitch without a word, broom slung over his shoulder. The team watched him retreat back to the castle, no one moving and no one saying a word as he left.

However, I could take a gander as to what everyone was thinking:

We were so screwed.

* * *

I couldn't help but laugh in amusement when I learned that Sirius had actually broken his arm when he fell off the broom. The thing is, Sirius didn't even _notice _it until it had started to swell and someone suggested that he go to the hospital wing. Where, oddly enough, Sirius thought it deemed a good spot to hold a quick get together with the team.

The rest of the players and Remus agreed to have an "official" meeting about James' behaviour on the upcoming weekend in Hogsmead, discussing the possibility of having to pull in the reserve chaser. James hadn't spoken to anybody in or out of the dorm room and, I mean this in all sincerity, I was worried.

For the team, I mean.

James could go to hell for all I care.

If my uncle got word of me losing my first Quidditch match, I'd never hear the end of it.

We had squeezed ourselves around one tiny table in the Three Broomsticks, sharing two gallons of butterbeer between us. Everyone was suggesting their ideas on what to do about the upcoming match that we were nowhere near ready for.

"We could ask McGonagall if we could change the schedule,"

"Maybe it's possible to train the reserve chaser in time for Saturday?"

"Or we could beat Potter's arse with our brooms until he decides to be a half decent person,"

For some reason, they didn't like my idea as much. Odd, I thought it was rather brilliant…

We spent the better part of an hour trying to find a half decent scheme that would win us the match or at least buy us some time. In the end, they had settled on trying to _convince_ him to play. How boring. I stuck rather adamantly to my idea about beating some sense into him.

Still spitting out ideas as we left the quaint café, we barely made it out the door before we ran into a rather angry familiar face.

"So…" said James Potter heatedly, watching us grimace at being caught, "the entire team _except me _was having a meeting?" he shouted. The team and I exchanged nervous looks with each other. It didn't take more than two brain cells for him to realise that the entire team had been together and he had been excluded from the little outing.

Remus decided to speak first, "James, it's just that we're not sure if you'll be ready for the first match in one week,"

"You really have been blowing off a lot of practices," Joe Daniels added.

"And you won't talk to the team," Jordan piped.

"Or anyone for that matter,"

"And you won't do your homework,"

"And you cursed out that poor little second year—"

"Would you just _shut up?"_ he shouted, clearly angry as his fists clenched the roots of his hair, mussing it up only more, "I'll be at the match on Friday, _okay?"_

"It's not a matter if you'll _be _there, James," said Sirius coolly, "It's a matter of if you'll be _playing,"_

"I SAID I'D BE THERE!"

Half the team looked doubtful or like they were about to question him, but we had been so caught up in our argument that we never noticed the group of people approaching us.

"Aaah, _regardent ça, mes garçons. __C'est James Potter_," The sound of the language caused a shiver down my spine. I love French…it's just how it was being said that unnerved me. "Long time no see, _mon ami,_"

The team whirled around wildly to see had addressed James in such a way. There were seven tall, lean, and very athletic looking young men, each looking just as intimidating as the next.

The leader of the pack—or at least the one that proudly stood in front of the other six mindless minions—had to have at least three inches on James. His smirk was feral and his eyes were unnatural prominent. Kind of like an insect's. Buzzing around in somebody else's business and attacking the wound of an injured animal…I got bad vibes all over from this guy.

"Dupont," spat James with extreme amounts of disdain. I mean, James didn't even take that tone with _me _when he was angry. I wondered if this character intimidated James at all.

His mouth quirked in an upwards almost lazy smile and he looked down at James like he wasn't worth the time, "Please, _James, _we've known each other for years. I would think that after all of our _history _that we would be on a first-name basis,"

_Bad _history, I could only guess by the look of rancour written across his face. At the same time, I almost immediately realised that he was French.

"Fine, _Christian,_" his teeth were gritted and his fists were clenched. I wasn't quite sure if the name could be considered ironic or not. "What the hell are you doing in Hogsmead?"

"Can't an old friend come say hello every once in a while?" he asked all-too innocently.

"_Nous ne sommons pas des amis,"_ We're not friends, James told him firmly.

That didn't break Dupont's smile in the slightest, "But I had thought that I should congratulate you on your captain position,"

"I'm not captain," he gritted tightly, "But I suppose that it's safe to assume that _you_ are,"

He nodded, the smile widening to reveal two rows of dead-straight teeth.

"It was a unanimous vote, of course,"

"Congratulations," James spat, not meaning what he said in the slightest.

Dupont hummed slightly, "I can see why you did not win the favour of your team with that _dreadful_ attitudeof yours_, _James,"

His wand was drawn before I could even blink, but Dupont was ahead of him with a verbal attack, "_And _I thought Danielle had told you on numerous occasions that it was _unkind_ to hex people?"

I heard the team, and myself, suck in a huge gust of air and hold our breaths.

This didn't look good at all. I didn't know who to feel more sorry for; James because of his failed relationship with Danny, or Dupont who was about to get the snot kicked out of him.

"You don't know half of what you think you do," James snarled dangerously, his grip on the wand tightening.

"Ah, but I believe that I _do, _James," Dupont smiled acidly but his tone staying calm and cool, "Who else would Danielle turn to when you abandoned her for the love of Quidditch?"

Was it just me or did it seem like the team had taken five steps backwards?

"_Vous ne savez rien_," You know nothing. James' tone was hissed out icily, barely audible. I thought for a moment that he was going to curse him—he really should have, too—but James had always been a surprising sort of fellow and walked off tensely, putting his wand into the pocket of his robes.

"Hey, mate, c'mon," said Sirius, facing Dupont, "That wasn't necessary," Besides Quidditch, when had Sirius ever sounded so…serious? The humorous glint had disappeared from his eyes and his shoulder slouched slightly making him looked older and more tired. It unnerved me to see that the joker of the deck had to resort to a more staid temperament.

"I have said nothing offensive," Dupont said in his smooth voice, not raising it a treble, "Just the truth of the past,"

Sirius didn't have that type of control and grabbed the front of his robes, "You damn well know what you said, you little _conard!_"

"Sirius—!" Remus a move to stop him while I stood there, slack jawed upon learning that Sirius could curse someone out in French.

He almost too easily was able to throw off Sirius, and apparently Dupont had hidden his wand up his sleeve and pulled it out on the Gryffindor beater.

Sirius wasn't armed in anyway except for the daggers he was glaring at him and I felt my blood boil and the hairs on my back stand up on end like a cat's. It was a redhead thing.

"Hey!" I snapped, hammering my way to the front of the team where Sirius and Dupont stood. Once I was in front of Sirius, I suddenly realised I had _absolutely _no idea what I was doing or what I was going to say. "Um…" I really needed to work on this sort of thing, "Back off!" I said at last, though it was rather belated and lame.

Their team regarded me with a mix of cool, annoyed, and almost amused looks.

"_Oh, look, the team even has a mascot,"_ said one of the more blurry players in French. _"Rather short little fellow, don't you think?"_ The team snickered.

I bristled. The Gryffindors looked at each other nervously, wondering what they had said, sans Remus because he actually spoke French and could see that they were just being assholes.

Icily, I answered, _"You are sadly mistaken if you think everyone here is ignorant,"_

The team stopped laughing and their eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"_Comment __vous appellez-vous?"_

"Li Evans," I answered stonily, not breaking eye contact as they sized me up a second time.

"So it would seem that not _everyone _here is incompetent. It must be just James, then," His mask of cool indifference had finally begun to fade into the cold and calculating bastard he really was.

"James is not incompetent and neither is anyone on the team!" Most of the time, I mentally added. I wasn't quite sure why I was so adamant about defending James either.

They barked out in laughter, "Your 'team'is nothing more than seven little children riding on their _l'argent de leurs parents_," Parent's money.

"_C'est pas vrai!_" That's not true! I snapped. I wondered just _where _all of this mysterious confidence was coming from. The team had completely backed off and decided to see how well I would handle this. "We are a _brilliant _team, thank you, not a group of spoiled brats!" Again, this applied to most of us considering James—depending on what side of the bed he woke up on—would drift from either side of the spectrum.

"Really now?" His lips suddenly curl into a steeling smile and he asked, "Do you think you and your little friends can _prove _yourselves against a better team in a real man's match?" he voice was demanding a challenge and I, apparently, was more than unwittingly willing to give it to him…

"_Yes!_" I snapped, "Just say _when and where!_"

"EVANS!"

Oh, so _after _my mouth ran off on its own again the team wants to have an opinion? Great, thanks.

"Friday, next week, five o'clock," Dupont decided. Truthfully, I was a little startled that he had already thought of a time and place. Not to mention a tad worried because our match against Hufflepuff was the next day and we couldn't afford any injuries on the team. "There's an abandoned Quidditch pitch about two miles past Hogsmead's east end,"

"We'll be there!" I shouted after the team as they turned to walk away.

"_EVANS!"_

"_WHAT?_" I suddenly noticed the tone I was taking with me teammates and quickly adopted a politer tone, "I mean…er, what?"

"Evans…" Sirius said dangerously.

"Um, yes?"

"Who is the captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team?" he said slowly.

"You are…?" Wow, I sounded confident.

"And _who _should be the one who determines when the team is ready to play a match?"

"You?" I guessed.

"So why did it suddenly strike your fancy to challenge a foreign team whom none of us have heard of, not knowing the players or their tactics?" His voice was unusually cool.

However, the only thing that humoured my mind was that Sirius _actually _used the word "whom".

"Umm…"

"EVANS!" a new voice called.

With a look of relief, I hoped that it had been someone like Nigel or Joanna or, hell, even _Agnes_ calling me and could save me from this little…disagreement…

I turned to look at the origins of the voice, but my face fell when I saw that it was none other than James Potter himself with a look of furry on his face that practically assured me that I was not going to be making it back to the castle with all limbs intact.

Jeebes, couldn't they give a girl a break? I just had my appendix ripped out!

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"

Bah.

**:-:**

**-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

**Har har har…James, you're such a charmer. I'm so sorry that this chapter is rather short, but I really wanted to get it posted.**

_**Chapter Eight Preview: **_**Due Sometime Next Week!**

The relationship between Christian Dupont and Danny

Confrontations with Snape

Lily's owl

Charlie's response

The Match (note the capitol letters)

& Danielle


	8. The Owl That Called 'Whore'

"**Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **20 November 2006  
**Chapter Eight  
**"**The Owl That Called 'Whore'"**

**:-:**

My first instinctive reaction was to, naturally, run. Running is very good exercise, you know. Keeps the heart healthy. However, I ended up diving behind Remus and hoped that he would protect me from the wrath of James.

"WHAT THE F—" Honestly, the boy had such a sailor's mouth! "—WERE YOU THINKING?"

"Er—James, I'm sure that Li was just caught up in the argument—" Remus tried to pacify him, (and also tried to remove himself from the position of my personal defence) but he was just pushed aside and I dived behind Victor, a rather beefy (and dishy, might I add), seventh year.

"YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT THEIR TEAM IS CAPABLE OF!" he roared angrily, practically hoisting Victor into the air to try to take a swipe at me but I ducked just in time.

"MURDER!" I cried out desperately, attracting the attention of passers-by, "ATTEMPTED MURDER! _HELP!_"

James ignored the stares and my pleas for help, "YOU THINK THAT JUST BY SLIDING YOUR WAY INTO THE QUIDDITCH TEAM THAT YOU WOULD HAVE A SAY ABOVE EVERYBODY ELSE WHO HAVE SPENT YEARS TRAINING TO CALL THEMSELVES A GRYFFINDOR QUIDDITCH PLAYER?"

Ducked behind Maud, the keeper who didn't really seem to care much for me ever since the practice I gave him a bloody nose when I slipped the quaffle.

"ER—NOT REALLY!" I admitted.

"I DON'T SEE WHERE THE HELL YOU GET OFF INTERFERRING WITH _MY LIFE_!"

Maud moved out of the way and I was suddenly out of my line of defence, (the rest of the team had backed off and I couldn't really blame them. James could kick the snot out of anyone any day), "Hey! I _defended you!" _I snapped angrily, cutting him off by boldly whirling around to face up to him, "I defended you when no one else on the _whole team _would because you treat them all like—like absolute _crap!_"

Maybe making him even angrier wasn't the best idea after all…

James went silent for a minute, but the fire behind his eyes barely diminished and his hands clenched tightly.

"Prongs, mate," said Sirius, appearing out of nowhere to sling am arm around his shoulder, "Let's go get some whiskey,"

_Prongs_…that word sounded oddly familiar. Hmm…this bared further investigation. Perhaps later (much later) when the team didn't look like they were about to attack me like James. Yes, then I would investigate just why Sirius called James an antler-head.

"Way to go, Evans," snapped Maud, bumping into me as the rest of the team deserted me.

"Hey, Remus?" I asked the only person who stayed behind and was probably the only one would speak to me, "Just who is Christian Dupont?" It would probably be good to know a thing or two about the enemy, I thought.

He shook his head sadly, "It's really not my place to say," was all he said.

Bollocks, I say. Screw secrecy and just _get to the damn point._

I watched as Remus, too, turned his back on me and returned to the castle, leaving me feeling slightly empty without the support of my team that I had grown so accustomed to.

* * *

In an attempt to get away from the glares delivered by the team during the next few days, I often holed myself up in the library and stayed out of the dorms as much as possible.

I was at least two weeks ahead of most of my subjects, homework wise, yet I was reluctant to do my Transfiguration work. One look at the complicated diagrams and Latin phrases for human transfiguration, I slammed the book closed and almost missed the paper that went flying out. Bending down the pick up the parchment, I brushed the stray hairs that ran across my nose. My hair was growing awfully quickly, I realised, knowing that a trip to the barber's was needed soon.

Sitting straight once again, I looked at the old parchment that had been smashed in between the pages of my Transfiguration textbook and realised that this was the list I had composed the same day I accidentally called Danielle a boy in class weeks ago. My eyes flicked over the compiled names and nouns and allowed the puzzle pieces to place themselves.

During the amount of time that had passed, I guess that I didn't really notice that things were starting to click bit by bit.

Madam Rosmerta, the barmaid at the Three Broomsticks whose name was frequently accompanied by adjectives such as hot, sexy, and so forth, (eye roll), seemed to be on friendly terms with my roommates and, as they had described, she was very attractive. The four of them were, in some way or another, involved with Quidditch. Sirius and James on the team, Remus the manager, and Peter the loyal unfailing support from the stands and sub-commentator. Notorious as pranksters all over the school, I had overheard a student comment on how surprised they were there hadn't been many pranks courtesy of the four this year. Probably because of Danielle, I suspected. It had become clear that the fraternity group was called the _Marauders _and just included Sirius (Padfoot), Remus (Moony), James (Prongs), and Peter, who I assumed was dubbed Wormtail. But what in the world was a Snivelly/Snivellus…?

I guess I just needed to be patient until everything else would unravel for me, since _no one would tell me anything_.

Sod patience. Useless rubbish.

I slapped the parchment back on top of my transfiguration homework (or lack there of) and slumped into my chair.

A voice loomed behind one of the bookshelves, "Having fun in the boys' dorms, Evans?"

It was Snape.

I muttered a curse under my breath as I turned around in my seat, the quill shaking in my hand as I put it down, "You don't know anything," I said before I could help it in more of an attempt to reassure myself.

But my mind was racing a mile a minute. This didn't look too good for me.

Snape rolled his eyes, "Oh _yes, _because no one suspects anything else of the slimy Slytherin Snivelly," I didn't even have to glance at the parchment to confirm my thoughts that had immediately registered. I was vaguely worried as I wondered if Snape had read it over my shoulder. "I've done the research and even though _Evans _may be a common name but the only way you're _Li _Evans if you're Li Arnold Evans, a seventy year old man who died in the fifties and is buried at St. Catchpole Graveyard."

I cringed. This _really _didn't look too good for me.

"However there is a _Jonathan Evans_ currently living near muggle Yorkshire and working as a wizard sports editor,"

Crapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrapcrap…

"How long have you known?" I asked; my face was a mask of iron.

…if iron were made of jell-o, that is.

Snape chuckled darkly and it made me only more nervous, "Since the moment I first saw you,"

_That long?_ I nearly choked, trying to not remember the leering gaze Snape sent me outside of the loo.

"You going to rat me out?" I asked, my voice slightly cracked.

"It's not my secret to tell," said Severus with a slick tone and a sneaky smile that made me want to shudder violently.

"Um...okay, great thanks. Really 'preciate it. Bye now," I heaved all of my books and papers into my arms in an attempt to make a dash for the exit.

His laughter made me stop in my tracks, "You're not that very good at hiding it you know,"

_Merde. _The papers nearly went flying out of my hands.

"Like what?" I asked, unsure if I wanted to really know.

"Oh, just the trivial things," he drawled lazily, "Twirling your hair in class when you're bored. Resting your hands on your hips when you're annoyed…quite frankly I'm surprised that no one suspects anything. Must just be something in the Gryffindor tower, then. Stupidity is contagious, I suspect."

I bristled.

"What's it going to take to keep you quiet?" I asked him, suddenly feeling deflated.

"I never said I would tell anyone," he answered vaguely. Snape leaned against the bookshelf and folded his arms like he could wait there all day.

I rolled my eyes, "I don't have time for your games, _Snape_, now just tell me what you want," Sirius had been right on the train when he said that Severus Snape was a little…off.

"I may be above blackmail, but even I have a soft spot for petty gain,"

This was a totally different ballpark compared to the trouble I had originally thought I was in. I was too stunned that I didn't even know how to respond to him.

"I'll see you around, _Miss Evans,"_

Chuckling like maniacal chucklers do, Snape walked off to…be Snape-ish, leaving me with an unpleasant feeling in the bottom of my stomach as I hoped that nobody heard.

* * *

It was the next day when I was, _one: _avoiding Agnes by bribing second years to surround me. _Two:_ avoiding Snape and taking all necessary measures to steer clear of him. Including dropping a set of scales on his foot when I thought he was trying to corner me in the potions classroom. And _three:_ moodily munching on my toast until I received Charlotte's response to my letter after having recognised her owl Poppet. However, it was to my surprise when there were _two _owls that had flown in with me as their destination.

I wasn't terribly bothered with the unknown owl that kept pecking my ears or stealing a bite of bacon, but I still read Charlie's letter first.

_Cher Billy-goat,_

_Danielle? Why are you looking for a girl, Lils? Is there something you haven't told us?! Ha ha, just playing with you, _fille!

_Anyway, I had to look around a bit to find this mysterious _Danielle Who-Has-No-Last-Name _and apparently she's sixteen but was put into an advanced course with the year above us, which explains why we've never met her. Well, actually, I recognised her from being one of my customers at my job at the café over the summer. Small world, non?_ _I'm pretty sure that I've served her once or twice over the holidays but we've never really talked. I got to _actually _meet her today when I went around questioning everything in a skirt if their name was Danielle. She's really nice and everything._

_Not to mention _drop-dead gorgeous.

_Seriously, Lily, way to lower my self-esteem by making me go find her. I don't think that even if we were really good friends I would go out in public with her I would feel so bad._

_Thanks, babe._

_So, _super-secret mission that cannot be explained via post _aside and more importantly, how are things on the Quidditch front!? You have given us absobloodlylutely no details! How's the team? The boys? The uniforms? Has your season started yet? When's your first match? Come on, _fille, _we're dying to get some information over here!_

_My parents are making me go to the south for the October holidays. Since I feel bad for not being able to visit you while on break, the girls and me are going to stalk you at Christmas time!_

_Brace yourself…!_

_A bientôt, chere!_

Charlie

So Danny had the option to be put up a grade like James had as well? But I guess only she took it.

And Charlie got to go to her vacation house in October! I was practically seething with envy. Her family was rather well off and bought a shore house near the Spanish border almost two summers ago. Lucky duck.

The next letter was from my uncle and I tried to shoo away the owl once I had untied the letter from its leg but the ruddy bird wouldn't leave me side.

_Dear Li,_

_You must love seeing your dear old uncle squirm. I haven't heard from you in weeks! No matter, I've heard that all is well at Hogwarts and the Quidditch teams are really shaping up! _

_I've also heard that the first match of the season is on the twenty-fourth against Hufflepuff. I don't know if I'll be able to write within the next week because of work, but good luck and I know you'll do great! I'm expecting a letter all about the match after you've won!_

_And keep your grades up. _(Jeez, I loved how that was an afterthought…)

_If it makes you feel any better, the owl is yours just like I promised. It took me forever to get to Diagon Alley and find one that I'd thought you'd like. You can name __him._

_Take care__,_

_John_

I spit out my half-chewed biscuits. John was actually _true to his word_ and got me an _owl?_

"Are you all right, Li?" Remus asked from my left side, (Jo was sitting on my right side and some little second year that I bribed was across from me so I was completely protected from Agnes), "You look pale as a ghost,"

"My uncle got me an owl," I said in disbelief, "He actually got me an _owl,_"

"I'm sorry…?"

I rolled my eyes, "It's not a bad thing," I said, carefully stroking the bronze streaked bird on the table. "I'm just surprised is all!" It wasn't as though John was forgetful…but when it came to anything _but _Quidditch, his mind wasn't fully there.

"So what are you going to name it?"

"I dunno," I answered truthfully, "Got any ideas?"

And many over-hearing people did. It actually turned into a rather heated Gryffindor table debate.

"Killer?"

"Cujo?"

"George?"

"Maxamillion?"

"Memphis!"

"What kind of a name is _that?_" I gave Frank Longbottom a bewildered look.

He let out a sheepish laugh, "It's where Elvis grew up,"

I wasn't quite sure how to respond that suggestion, but thankfully someone had approached the table and asked, "What in the world is going on over here?" It was Nigel. He took a seat next to Jo (who was sporting a lovely shade of lime green and curled highlights in her hair that day) and added, "The Ravenclaw table wants to know what the devil everyone is yelling about,"

"I need to name my owl," I whined pathetically, "And nobody's been giving me any good names and the ruddy bird won't leave me alone until I name it!"

"What about Chudley?" he tried.

"Chudley?" I snorted, "What kind of a name is _that?_"

Nigel made a vague gesture, "You know, the Chudley Cannons? The team that hasn't won the World Cup in a hundred and seventeen years?"

"Ha! Let me get this straight," I drawled, "You want me to name my first owl _Chudley _after a loser Quidditch team?"

He looked like he was about to respond if Joanna hadn't said, "You already did,"

We looked at her confused.

"An owl responds automatically to the first name that is said by its first master." She explained, "And you just said _Chudley _in reference to a name,"

Aw, crap.

"It's a shame, too," she added on dreamily, "If I hadn't known that it was a boy, I would have named him Luna. Such a lovely name actually,"

Chudley hooted happily.

* * *

"Li! Li, do you want to sit next together in Charms?"

"No thanks,"

Agnes was being clingy.

"I SWEAR I'M GOING TO KILL YOU, EVANS!"

"I know,"

James was being an arse.

"_WHOOOOOOOOORRRRE,"_

"Thank you, Chudley,"

My owl was calling me a whore.

"Charms is like, _so_ your best subject,"

"IF _ANYONE_ IS INJURED BEFORE OUR FIRST MATCH IT'LL BE YOUR HEAD!"

"_WHHHOOOOOOOOOOORRRE!"_

"Actually, I could probably use so tutoring in that class. Do you wanna help me?"

"I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW YOU FIND THE NEED TO INTERFERE IN EVERYONE ELSE'S BUSINESS!"

"_WHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRRREE!"_

Merlin, I was willing to take on _Snape in a dark alley _instead of this.

Eventually, I was able to send Chudley to the owlery, escape Agnes and James and hid inside the dorm room for the evening.

We had a practice the previous evening and it made me want to eat my brain and all the mushy stuff in between. The beaters were distracted, the keeper was bitter, Jordan was blindingly innocent, and James was screwing up everything with our chaser patterns.

We didn't have time for mistakes like these.

Just when I thought the rare amount of silence would drive me insane, Remus entered the dorm.

"Hello, Li," he greeted me like always, knowing that even though my curtains were drawn I was in my bed.

"'Lo," I answered, pulling back the drawings suddenly looking for any excuse to move around and leave my divan. I saw him rummaging through his trunk and I asked out of curiosity, "What're you doing?"

His movements halted for a split second, "I have a sick relative," he said, "I'm leaving later this evening and should be back by tomorrow and make it to the match,"

In my opinion, he seemed to be looking rather peaked as well.

"Great, now who's gonna defend me when James wants to disembowel me?" I grumbled, flopping back onto the bed with a muffled _thmmph._

"You'll be fine, Li," Remus reassured me, "Just…don't stray into any dark alleys alone…avoid empty corridors and classrooms…safety in numbers…have witnesses,"

I sat up sharply, "When did you get so morbid?" I asked, slightly nonplussed.

He sighed audibly, resting his head in his hand and then chuckled, "Probably ever since we brought up Danielle on the train,"

Of course. The root of all our problems: Danielle.

Stupid French tart.

"James hasn't been the same in months," he added.

"Have they kept I contact?" I asked.

He shook his head, "It's doubtful,"

"If we could just get Danielle and James to talk…" my voice trailed off as my face lit up with an idea.

As if by telepathy, Remus shook his head vigorously, dropping something back into his trunk. He didn't seem very taken with the idea. As a matter of fact, he looked quite opposed to the idea.

"I _really _don't—"

I leapt off my bed, "To the owlery!"

And with Remus in tow, I dashed through the castle's second tallest tower.

Throwing open the doors dramatically into the nearly silent room, I called in a teasing way, "Chudley! C'mon you crazy bird I have a mission for you!"

"_Whooorr…"_ Of course my owl would be heard above all the others…

Remus froze beside me.

"Did your owl just…?"

"Yes,"

"And are you all right with…?"

"No. Now _come on, _Chudley,"

"_Whoooorr?"_

"No, the _other _owl named after a rubbish Quidditch team," I rolled my eyes, "Get down here. Please." I like my manners. Henceforth why I didn't get a long with James Potter. Chudley fluttered down and landed on a poop-covered stool.

"Parchment," I demanded, holding my hand out, staring at the wall that I would use as a flat surface to write on.

Remus handed me a black piece from his binder while saying, "I highly doubt that James would appreciate it if you—"

"Quill,"

He sighed, placing the writing utensil in my hand, "—interfered with his private life. He doesn't even like it when we mention—"

"I'm _working_, Remus," I said in a strumming voice.

Another aggravated sigh.

"_Why _am I here, Li?"

"To spell-check," I told him.

_Cher Danielle,_

_I don't think you remember me that well, but my name is Li Evans and I'm the boy from Hogsmeade. I gave James your letter, which is basically why I'm writing to you._

_He can't focus, Danielle. He can't do anything. Truthfully, James and I are not great friends but we're both on the Quidditch team and we all have our concerns about him. He never leaves the library but he never has his homework in class, he hardly touches his meals, and, for the love of Merlin, _he insulted Quidditch_._

_I know that whatever was in the letter doesn't concern me, but whatever it contained really messed him up. Again, it's none of my business, but please: _talk to him.

_There's going to be a secret match held at Hogsmead's east end on Friday at five o'clock at the abandoned Quidditch field against a 'friend' of yours named Christian Dupont._

_He really needs you there, Danielle. James needs you to clear things up with him because I don't know what will happen to him if you don't._

_Yours Sincerely,_

_Li Evans_

This was the only idea I had come up with, and if it didn't work, I stood firm to my opinion of beating Potter senseless until he decided to be a half decent person.

"James is going to eat you alive," Remus said, shaking his head sadly as he read the letter over my shoulder. "You forget the 's' in _appelles__._"

I quickly corrected the error in a flourish, "Tell him I taste best with custard," was all I said, watching Chudley fly off towards the clouds.

Destination: France.

I wondered if anyone would like the outcome of my actions.

* * *

Just hours before The Day I Would Get My Arse Handed Back To Me (capitol letters and all), not only was the team officially giving me the cold shoulder, but it seemed like sleep was just a distant fleeting memory in the depths of my mind.

On the morning of The Day I Would Get My Arse Handed Back To Me, not only did my roommates totally decide not to wake me up, but I had nearly missed breakfast as well. The team wouldn't even talk to me, classes were either boring or just plain awful, and if Agnes came onto me _one more time…_

The match remained one of the Gryffindor's best kept secret and more than half of the tower had miraculously been able to sneak out and fill the stands almost an hour before the game was scheduled to start.

I, however, was waiting at the Hogsmead entrance where I was expecting at any minute—

"Li Evans?" said a voice that made me jump out of my skin and let a bright array of sparks fly out of my wand. In French, I Danielle said, "_Sorry, I really must stop running into you like this,"_ So she _did_ remember nearly giving me a heart attack last month…

"_Pas un problem,"_ I answered, demanding that my heart rate return to normal lest I suffer from a heart attack sooner in life. She must've apparated instead of using muggle transportation, I thought. I hadn't really noticed until I received Charlotte's letter…but Danielle was _very _beautiful. Deep brown hair, ice blue eyes an inch or so taller than me and had a body I would _kill _to have.

Not literally, of course.

Well…actually, if she was a size C-cup I just might have to…

"I received your letter," said Danielle, not looking at me, but craning her neck to look down the road, "Is James here?" she asked quietly.

"Not yet," I said grimly. The match was in ten minutes and I was beginning to wonder if James was going to flake out on the team.

"_Je suis désolée," _I'm sorry, she told me suddenly.

Confused, I returned me gaze to her slightly flushed face, silently waiting for her to continue.

"_I heard that Christian came to 'ogsmead and caused some problems for your team,"_

"_It's okay," _I told her and didn't mean for it to sound as offhanded as it came out. "_How do you know him? Christian, I mean."_

Her loyal eyes returned to the path we were expecting James to be walking down any minute, "_He used to be good friends with me and James,"_

"_Used to be?"_ I frowned deeply. So Dupont must have just come to Hogsmead to play around with the animosity between them then…

Danielle sighed, "_Christian was rather opposed to me and James dating which caused a rift between the two last summer. James later confessed to me that Christian…" _here she sighed again as well, seeming more and more reluctant to continue, "_I'm sorry for sounding so vain, but James said that Christian had fancied me for a rather long time. Before we had met James. Christian and I had been friends since we were ten and we met James when we were fourteen during vacation."_

"_Oh,_" It wasn't the most intelligent thing to say, but it was a response nonetheless. I wanted to envy her, but with that tired expression on her face I could only imagine how torn she was.

"Why don't you go take a seat in the bleachers?" I suggested after a moment's silence.

She seemed to hesitate like she would rather meet James before the match (or it took her an extra moment to comprehend the English), but nodded and left.

Not long after, I saw a gloomy looking figure hover over the fog that had begun to settle in. It slowly made its way down the pitch and was less than a hundred metres off before I could recognise the shape.

"Thank Merlin," I sighed in relief, standing at last, "James is here,"

I thought about running down to greet him, but when he was close enough and I could clearly see the displeasure written on his face, I decided against it and lightly jogged to the rest of the team on the far side of the pitch.

James was about ten paces behind me when I joined the group, listening for the pre-game speech/lecture/drabble _et cetera et cetera_…Much to my surprise, it was rather short and finished just as James joined us.

"Let's go, guys," grunted Sirius, "Play your best and don't _die_,"

Thanks, mate. I really hoped the pep talk against Hufflepuff would go better.

I looked around as we entered the aged stadium to see the loyal Gryffindors waving colourful banners and chanting their classmates' names. There didn't seem to be many supporters for the opposing team and I wondered if they were even intimidated by the lack of cheering for them. But that wasn't my main concern.

Christian Dupont and his cronies were approaching the team. I wanted to throw back my shoulders to show that I wasn't intimidated…but I was rather afraid that it would make my, er, you know…more _noticeable…_

"Everything to your liking?" he asked.

Why was he asking _me?_ I wasn't the captain. I turned around to give a bewildered look to Sirius only to find him and the rest of the team five paces back, giving me looks that said, "You got us into this, now get us out of it,". Greeeeat.

I looked around the stadium. The stands had been cleaned though the affect was probably only temporary, the goal posts had been restored for the match, but more importantly…there were no referees.

He must've noticed my expression and said with a delicate smirk, "Rules are: _no wands,_ _no rules. _Anything goes,"

_Merde._

I could practically feel the team burning holes in the back of my head with their glares.

"Hi, Li!" I heard a familiar person chirp happily and I wanted to groan loudly and bash my head in with my broom as Agnes approached, "I get to flip the coin because there're no refs!"

"Congratulations," I gritted through my teeth.

"Do you want to call it?" she asked, wide-eyed and imploring.

And have the team hate me even more if we didn't win the coin toss? Not bloody likely.

"Sirius is the captain," I said, sending him a mental distress signal, "He should call it,"

Which proved to be good decision because luck had decided to be in our favour and we won first dibs on the quaffle.

Since James had silently and without argument walked off towards the ground position of left wing, I picked up the quaffle off the frost-covered grass. The teams swung their legs over their brooms and followed my lead as I shot up into the air without warning because there was no referee to signal the start and so the game began.

Their team was brutal. And by "brutal" I mean I was beginning to contemplate suicide if my teammates didn't kill me first. The Gryffindors were barely hanging in there. And by "barely hanging in there" I mean that I was eternally grateful that no one had lost life or limb. Maud Brooks, our keeper, had to sit out for ten minutes after he took a bludger to the head which left our goals virtually defenceless. Jordan tried to help out with that when there was no snitch in sight and he managed to block one with the tail end of his broom since he wasn't allowed to touch any other ball but the snitch but it was a rather futile attempt.

Sirius and Joseph were battling the bludgers furiously and trying their best to protect the team but it seamed as though the bludgers were just as ruthless as the opponents.

Victor and I weren't fairing too well on the chaser front either. Not only were our brooms older models, but also the opposing three chasers were just genuinely better than the two of us.

James was…breathing? Yes, James was breathing and that was pretty much it. Breathing, taking up space, existing…none of which helped Gryffindor much.

I had almost single-handedly scored a "grand" total of two goals and Victor with one also, but we were still falling behind.

I groaned as Dupont scored again, turning the possession of the quaffle over to us. Since I was unanimously voted the idiot who got us into this mess, I was the one who was supposed to be leading the chasers.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw one of the opposing beaters hit a bludger and even though his eyes locked with mine, I somehow knew that the bludger wasn't meant for me. The quaffle was knocked out of my arms as I looked over my shoulder to see what else he could be aiming at and my heart sank when I saw the back of an innocently flying barely-thirteen year old Jordan McClain.

"_Jordan!" _I shouted out in warning, whirling my broom towards the seeker, practically flat against the broom's handle in attempt to…in an attempt to satisfy my hero-complex, I suppose.

It's just like in the movies when someone is trying to warn their friend of impending doom and the second person looks everywhere _but _where the impending doom is coming from. I was close enough to him to see his eyes widen in surprise, too stunned to do anything as a rammed his broom out of the way.

"TIME!" I could hear Sirius shout as I fell. The chaser continued to lob the quaffle through the hoop and Sirius was livid, "I CALLED A TIMEOUT, DAMMIT!"

The grass was cool against my flushed face but for some reason I just couldn't bring myself to move. I could hear the team landing down beside me.

I laid, motionless, barely feeling the broom loosely clutched in my hand or the teardrops that threatened to fall from my eyes because of the pain. Who'd of thought that the wiry looking beater had such muscle behind him?

"This is _his _fault!" Maud said bitterly from somewhere left of my form.

I cringed. It was my big mouth that got us into this mess after all, but they could at least give me a break! I did just take a bludger for our seeker, yeesh.

"I'm fine," I croaked. But more importantly: "I can still play," My world turned as I sat up and I had to regain myself for another moment before standing.

The team gritted and grumbled, mounting their brooms once again; probably half hoping that they wouldn't have to continue the match.

But I was mad. I watched as Dupont knocked Victor into the stands to get the quaffle and took off towards our goals. I rammed my broom into his much like I had to Jordan, but this time with a more malicious feeling about it, not the desire to save him from a bludger.

Completely taken by surprise with my sudden want to play dirty, Christian had not expected me to slam him into an abandoned bleacher, stealing the quaffle as I did so.

Victor, who was up and in the air again, followed me down the pitch at a hundred kilometres an hour. I looked over to shoulder to see James Potter lagging behind by at least fifty metres and cursed.

I bludger went flying by and I nearly didn't dodge in time and had to backtrack several metres. The opposing chasers, including Dupont, were beginning to cut me off and I looked around for help wildly. James, of course, being wide open but unwilling to play.

"Damn it, Potter!" I yelled ferociously, clutching the quaffle to my chest as the three chasers swarmed me. Victor Bishop was being held off by a well-flying beater and James Potter was just hovering there, not ten metres away. "Play this game for your team mates! Do it for your stupid fraternity boys!" I still hadn't forgotten that I wasn't invited into their little club... "WIN THE SODDING MATCH FOR _HER!"_ With a spare hand, I pointed to the stands that I went flying by, barely catching Danielle's eye.

I don't know for sure if he heard me...but I think after James decided to get his arse in motion that just the two of us could have taken out their whole team. The match only lasted for ten more minutes when Jordan caught the snitch and our team won with a score of 330 – 170.

The team was cheering, jumping up and down while still trying to hoist the blushing seeker onto their shoulders. I was, of course, right in the middle of the Gryffindor celebration when I looked around to see where Potter had wandered off to. My winning smile slowly slid off my face when I saw him near the stands, not cheering with the rest of his team, but talking to a rather timid Danielle.

I casually slunk away from the cheering crowd to do the most obviously natural thing in the world: _eavesdrop._

No one noticed my disappearance just like they hadn't noticed James' and I ducked behind the bleachers, crawling under the seats to get closer to hear. Barely six metres away, I could hear them fine.

"_It's just..." _her eyes were tired and tearful, _"You are in love with everything you have in England, James! Playing Quidditch is your passion in life right now. I can't compete...and I don't want to try to anymore,"_

Oy, want some aloe for that burn, Potter?

I expected him to be angry, start shouting or pacing, but he didn't. He had decided to handle this _maturely_. Woah.

James nodded, _"I understand,"_

The both pushed around the dirt near their feet and stood there in awkward silence. Merlin, they were pathetic.

"_I'll be seeing you, okay James?"_

Another nod, "Yeah,"

I suddenly felt bad for him. Especially after teasing him in Transfiguration about Danielle being a boy.

"_Wait," _James started, "_How did you know to come here today?_"

I froze on the spot.

She smiled, _"That lovely friend of yours Li Evans sent me a letter. He said that you needed to talk to me."_

_Merde. Merde. Merde. Merde. Merde. _And _double merde._

The surprise on his face was clearly distinguishable, even from my awkward angle.

"_Are you sure?"_ he asked.

Danny nodded slightly, "_Quite!_" she laughed.

Oh sodding hell, James was going to skin me alive and hang my pelt like a wall ornament above his bed.

Danielle leant in to give him a brief friendly kiss on the cheek and they shared one last hug before she walked off, a sad smile on both of their faces, but Danielle looking slightly more relieved than James.

I started crawling backwards towards the rest of the team. It was best to find a public area where they could identify my body if needed be. An identified body with the proper name on the grave marker was always a plus. Next came the tricky part; running out from underneath the bleachers and getting back to the team without being—

"Hey," said James, appearing out of nowhere with a nod of his head. I froze, thinking the worst, but all he said was "Thanks…Li," And with that fully intentional and truly meant smile James gave me, no matter how slight, before he began to head up to the castle, I could suddenly see how he had won over Danielle's heart. Since he no longer hated me, I just hoped that he wouldn't do the same to mine.

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

**Oh dear, Lily's just asking for trouble, isn't she? And I really need to stop jinxing myself…I am so sorry that it took longer to get up than that one week I promised. If it makes things any better, I'm already five pages into the next chapter, and chapter ten is over twelve pages long and still isn't finished.**

**I don't know why, but I don't like to write things in chronological order. *shrugs***

**But good grief, Snape is such a pain to write T_T Blame him for the lateness. I just go so tired of him that I cut the scene in half.**

**And I think you all will be happy to know that I've finally written out the OFFICIAL ending! Double Woohooo! Aaaand I can tell you that the story is going to be just over twenty chapters long! **

**BOOGIE BOOGIE!**


	9. Tea Time With Tonks

"**Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **6 December 2006  
**Chapter Nine  
"Tea Time With Tonks"**

**:-:**

Maud, who had taken the bludger to the head, and myself, were told that we were going to be fine and perfectly capable to play in the first match of the season, much to the team's relief.

He also seemed to have forgiven me for the bloody nose and we were beginning to get on fine.

We were all suddenly doing much better, actually. The team that is.

Especially James, much to the relief of _everyone_. And by _everyone_, I mean the entire _school. _Before, he would snap at anyone who breathed his air, but now it was like he lit up the room when he crawled through the portrait hole.

The girls, having sensed the personality transplant in James, practically flocked to him before, during, and after classes. It was rather amusing watching him try to get rid of them all.

And after he smiled at me last week, that's when—er—_my _problems began.

Two problems, really. First and foremost I becoming a…a _guy. _A bloke. A dude. A man. _Masculine…!_

I had actively participated in belching contests at the lunch table the other day and could make a dirty joke about anything ranging from hags to hippogriffs at the drop of a hat.

Not good.

Secondly, I could _not _stop staring at James Potter's backside.

_Incredibly _not good.

Well, I mean of course his backside was just lovely; it was just the fact that I couldn't get my eyes off it when a girl would purposely drop her quill in class and James would bend down to retrieve it for her. It was _that _kind of not good.

Quite frankly I already knew all the rest of his physical features. I knew his untidy hair that looked like it had never heard the word comb in its life. I knew the easy hazel eyes that had started to sparkle more lately. And I knew his toned abs—a real treat that probably no other girl but me had been lucky enough to see in the locker room—that were to die for.

Immediately, I could tell that I was already doomed. I had fallen under the spell that is James Potter.

Which, in order to not totally blow my cover, I had to avoid him like the sodding plague so that my face wouldn't heat up the Gryffindor fireplace at Christmas time.

Which sucked major arse.

It was the morning of the Hufflepuff-Gryffindor match and it was when I was on my way down the Great Hall when I ran into a familiar face.

"Hey, Li, haven't seen you around much," said Nigel conversationally.

Suddenly, I felt rather guilty for ignoring him and Jo for the past couple of weeks. It hadn't been intentional of course; I had just been so swept up into helping the team and clearing things up with Danny and James (and staring at his editable bum).

I was about to apologise, but Nigel continued in a slightly more hushed tone.

"Listen, Li, I need your help,"

"Sure, what's up?" Hell, I'd probably help Lucifer if he asked me nicely. I'm a sucker with a huge soft spot.

"I want…" he trailed off.

There were many ways in which he could've finished that sentence:

"I want…you to help me with charms homework,"

"I want…your secret stash of French chocolate,"

"I want…a million galleons,"

But then the _real _reason why he had trailed off came up from behind me.

"Hullo, all," Jo interrupted us.

Nigel suddenly clammed up like a, uh, clam and the conversation died on the spot.

"Well I must be off," he said loudly, straightening slightly. "Jo," Nigel nodded and made sure she wasn't looking when he mouthed, "_We'll talk later,_" at me before running off.

"Um…okay," I wore a bewildered look as he ran.

"Nigel has been rather distant lately, hasn't he?" Joanna commented rather wistfully as she watched him practically sprint down the corridor.

Again, I didn't really know because we hadn't spoken so much lately.

"I asked him about it yesterday and he said that he was looking for evidence in an outbreak of the long nose jimjoms in the Netherlands," she said.

Jimjoms? I thought. Weren't they supposed to be those fictional characters (even in the eyes of the magical world) that were near invisible and burrowed themselves inside the boogers of a nose that supposedly caused compulsive sneezing?

What the hell was Nigel on…?

"Let's…go get some food," I said slowly, still rather confused, walking down the hall, "I need to get ready for the match soon,"

Having no time to spare because I had woken up late, (to nobody's surprise, really), I had to deal with Sirius hounding me to eat faster or else we were going to be late.

Eventually the team got him to lay off once I started choking on my oatmeal.

The moment I put my spoon down I was practically dragged from the table and down to the pitch before the rest of the school filled the stands.

Then it was the usual, "Oh, I left my uniform back in the dorm," excuse so I could change in private…I had to really book it back down to the grounds to get to the locker room in time.

But that day I seemed incapable of getting from point A to point B without being interrupted by someone.

_This _particular someone had not been seen in a couple of weeks since he had been spying on me in the library.

"Getting more and more difficult for you, is it?" Snape asked as I made it to the Entrance Hall.

"Sod off," I told him without looking but he matched my pace with unnerving ability and walked beside me.

"You really shouldn't be insulting me considering the status quo,"

"Why are you here?" I asked, finally sparing him a darting glance.

"Because I'm on my way to get a good seat in the stands so I can personally see the disaster of your match,"

I swelled with anger and snapped, "We're a _great _team, thank you, and we _are _going to win,"

He chuckled, "I wasn't referring to the _game, _Evans," Snape's smirk only increased as I let my confusion show, "Nice day," he commented casually and strolled off towards the stands.

Well this just sucked.

And, _again, _I did not have time to think about the meaning behind the words. Huffing and puffing, I threw the locker room doors open, hardly fazed by the guys running around without their trousers or shirts. However, that didn't stop me from being a good person and looking away.

"Two minutes, team!" Sirius shouted.

Maybe just a small peak since James was bending down to get his boots…

No.

You are _stronger _than this, Lily Evans! Look at something else! Look at…the dirt underneath your nails! Yes, that would do.

I grimaced. It had really been a while since I had buffered them…

"Earth to Evans!" Sirius shouted in my ear, catching me by surprise, "We've got a match to get to!"

I gave him an un-amused look, not exactly grateful for the earful.

"Let's boogie, team!" he shouted, ignoring my glare and clapping his hands.

We exited the locker rooms and passed the roaring loud elevated stands, waving and such.

There was one woman, however, a woman probably in her mid-twenties with long brown hair and rather tanned skin was bobbing her head to a tune that only she could hear and tapping her foot passively that wasn't seated with the rest of the school or professors.

"Andromeda!" exclaimed Sirius in surprise, nearly dropping his broom (which really said something about the significance of the person), "What are you doing here?"

"Can't a girl see her favourite disowned little cousin for the first match of the season without ulterior motives?" she asked innocently, pulling herself away from the stands.

I stared in confusion.

"D'aww, _shucks, _Andy, I'm your _only _disowned little cousin!" He laughed and was pulled into a bone-crushing hug by the woman.

Huh…?

"_Sirius! Sirius! Sirius!_" A girl who looked no older than four with a full head of pink ran out from behind Andromeda and wrapped her arms around the captain's legs.

Wait…pink? I did d a double take and sure enough, there was a little girl with bubblegum pink hair was latched on to Sirius' thighs. Odd. The Gryffindor captain obviously had some interesting relatives…

"REMY!" she cried out even more enthusiastically and dove at Remus who smiled, amused by the nickname.

"Hello, Nymphadora,"

The girl let go of Remus immediately so she could put her hands on her hips and huffed, "Don't call me that! I hate that name!"

"It's a lovely name!" her mother protested over from her conversation with Sirius.

"Who is this now?" I asked Jordan next to me in a low voice. After I had taken that bludger for him a week ago Jordan (the dear) practically hero-worshipped me and would go out of his way just for me. It was rather amusing really.

For example:

"Hey, somebody want to pass me the marmalade?"

Remus would move his hand a fraction of an inch towards the dish and then…

"I'VE GOT IT FOR YOU, LI," he would say in a determined voice, snatching the dish right from underneath Remus' nose and thrusting it under mine.

"Er, t-thank you, Jordan,"

But anyways, back to the present…

"Andromeda and Nymphadora Tonks," he answered immediately with a sense of duty, "Sirius' cousin Andromeda and her daughter, Nymphadora," he said, "Her and Sirius were both disowned by the Black family."

"That's horrible!" I gasped.

Jordan nodded fervently in agreement and added, "Their family is one of the most complicated and prominent pure blooded families currently living to date. Andromeda was disowned for marrying a muggle-born several years ago and Sirius ran away over the summer."

I nodded, still stunned, storing the information.

"But why does he seem so…_happy _all the time?" Or like he's high?

"I guess that's just Sirius for you," Jordan said simply.

I suddenly had a newfound respect for my Quidditch captain as I looked over my shoulder. Remus and Sirius were standing side-by-side with faces like they were trying very hard not to burst out into outlandish laughter as they looked down at the pink-haired girl.

"Call me Annie!" Nymphadora commanded them.

"But…I thought you wanted to be called Sarah?" Remus said, genuinely confused.

"Pfft," said Sirius, playing along, "That was _so _last month, Remus,"

He frowned, "I thought last month's name was Julie?"

"I'VE CHANGED MY MIND," the girl decided suddenly, making sure that her declaration was heard, "My name is…Abercrombie!"

Good grief.

"Abercrombie…?" Sirius repeated slowly.

"No wait!" she quickly backtracked, "I meant Franklin!"

Sweet Merlin, why do girls purposely go looking for male-sounding names? Charlie, Danny, Jo and _Franklin._ Merlin help us all, humanity is being mashed into one crazy cross-gender society.

…with me leading the way.

"She's going to give herself an identity crisis with all of these names at this rate," I said in disbelief.

"She's known for being a bit eccentric," Jordan chuckled as I stared, "And with her metamorphagus powers no one's quite sure what she really looks like. Not even her mum."

I looked back at the unusually pink-haired Nymphadora and my fellow Quidditch players.

"Do you wanna come to my tea party?" she asked Remus eagerly, eyes wide and hopeful.

He laughed nervously, "I'm afraid I have to manage the team at the moment—"

The innocently pink hair that sat on top of her head suddenly sparked to life and turned a demonic snake-curling red. "I _SAID_ DO YOU WANT TO COME TO MY TEA PARTY?" Nymphadora yelled, drawing the attention of, I don't know, half the stands. It was really a _question, _in my opinion, and I really didn't think Remus had a say in the matter.

"O-okay," Remus said, smiling rather fixatedly and flushing scarlet under everyone's laughter. Merlin knows I was barely containing myself, "I'll—er—I'll come," and still hunched over, Remus allowed himself to be dragged away by the short and oddly imposing little girl...I almost felt sorry for the poor bloke as he slumped after a skipping Nymphadora.

Again, almost. Once my sides weren't in stitches I might find the time to pity him.

"Good luck, guys," Remus waved apologetically.

And we never heard from him again.

Ha ha, just kidding. After we mounted our brooms, I could see him in the commentator's box, indeed, drinking what I suspected to be tea with Nymphadora as her mother chatted amicably with Professor Dumbledore.

With James playing the official lead chaser once again, I didn't mind so much being banished to the left wing. We rotated, anyways.

Madam Hooch threw the ball into the air and was immediately taken by James and Victor and I followed him down the length of the pitch.

Victor ducked twenty feet below James' broom and came up on his left and was thrown a very precise pass. At the same time, I had rotated above James by ten feet, in the lead and closest to the goals. Victor chucked me the quaffle and I immediately feigned right before sending it sailing into the centre hoop.

The crowd cheered and the three of us slapped our fists together and grinned widely at the first goal of the season.

The Hufflepuffs, not to be deterred by anything, took the quaffle given to them by the referee and the game continued.

Their chasers had gotten all the way to the goals and their attempt at scoring was blocked by Maud who passed me the quaffle immediately and James, Victor, and me were back down the pitch again.

James signalled for us to take a bit of a higher root up near the seekers who had to dodge us as we flew by in a whirl. I threw Victor the ball and he threw it to James. The three of us realised that we weren't close enough to the goals to score and I flew down closer to the goal posts and further from my chasers, setting myself wide open for a pass from James. He saw me and understood what I had in mind and I hoped that he didn't strain his shoulder as he hurled me the quaffle.

The pass was short by about ten feet and stolen by a Hufflepuff chaser. I sent a slightly annoyed glance at James and told him to pay attention but it looked like he personally jerked his broom away from my direction.

Except he hadn't.

I had seen him purposely lean far to the right, his hands in the correct positions and the signals said that he _should've_ turned right, but the fact of the matter was that he was forced _left._

By now, Hufflepuff had the quaffle due to the bad pass and I was frozen in air, hardly noticing anything other than James and the broom that had suddenly barrel-rolled.

I heard the commentator laugh, "And it looks like Potter is out there showing off for the ladies…"

The female half of the stadium giggled.

"James, what are you doing?" Victor yelled. He was too high up to see that there was something wrong with his broom.

"Quit showing off and get the quaffle back!" Joseph Daniels snapped as he flew by, chasing a bludger.

James said nothing but I felt my stomach lurch as he was nearly thrown into the air.

I caught Sirius' eye as he flew over.

"Something's wrong with his broom!" I shouted to him. The neighbouring players began to catch on.

It looked like he was about to answer, but a rogue bludger heading for Maud had him gritting his teeth and flying after it, "Go to the ref and call a time out!" he told me in a slur.

The referee was all the way on the other side of the pitch monitoring what she deemed some suspicious behaviour near the goalposts and I cursed, not wanting to leave James.

"Jesus, what the hell is Potter doing up there?" the commentator asked to no one in particular…unless he really _was_ talking to the son of God which I deemed unlikely.

The girls had stopped giggling everyone was suddenly focused solely on James whose broom had bucked up from underneath him that strangely reminded me of a demented cartwheel. He went toppling over the front of his broom and barely caught it in the nick of time with the very tips of his fingers.

"Christ—!" this seemed to be an awfully religious commentator… "—someone's bewitched Potter's broom!"

With a split-second to decide, I watched as the broom lurched once again, this time succeeding in ridding itself of James and the crowd screaming and gasping in fear, anger, and anxiousness.

He didn't shout or cry out as he dropped ten feet…fifteen feet…twenty feet or even thirty feet.

Maybe he was too stunned to do anything, or maybe he knew that he'd have a teammate catch him.

Granted, it would've been more romantic if _I _were in the "damsel in distress" situation and James had valiantly risked life and limb to save _me _and not the other way around_…_

I had dived after him and grabbed both of his elbows and locked my knees around my broomstick and crossed my ankles tightly. The action caused me to be flipped upside-down, my thighs and calves pinching the wood painfully and the blood rushing to my head, making my face just as red as my hair. It wasn't exactly comfortable, but the important thing was that James was, indeed, not a colourful pancake at the bottom of the pitch.

"Good Lord, I thought we were about to be short one Gryffindor!" That commentator really didn't do much to calm my nerves. It was a lucky thing that I had built up so much arm muscle during the pre-season and could hold on to him.

The last time I remembered hearing the score, it was ten to zero in favour of Gryffindor, but I knew for a fact that Hufflepuff had scored numerous times once James' broom had gone haywire and our team had been distracted. His broom had landed somewhere in the stands but I couldn't support his weight much longer hanging upside-down, let alone steer him to his broom; we were approaching the ground much too rapidly for my taste…

Luckily a streak of scarlet flew right in front of me and I could see Jordan racing after a glint of gold.

I could hear the crowds cheering so loudly that it seemed like one consistent lion's roar.

"…barely lasted five minutes! This must be some kind of record, folks…" the commentator said into the microphone but I could barely hear him. My eyes were focused on the one and only James Potter whose thin wire glasses reflected the sun and for some reason I couldn't help but think of him differently every time I looked at him.

The Gryffindor team was already surrounding us, Sirius looking both pained and relieved and the rest just confused.

We landed and I let him go, forcing myself to think about going to the victory party in the Gryffindor common room with the rest of the team.

And totally not stare at James' rump.

Of course not.

…well, alright, maybe just a little.

* * *

"Hey, Evans!" Sirius called across the room to where I was sitting quietly reading my book and doing a bit of homework. By now it was the last week of November and I had succeeded in _not _getting drunk at _any_ Gryffindor parties. God knows what I would say when I was absolutely pissed…

I had (for the second time in two months!) been declared a Gryffindor hero for saving James and the atmosphere suddenly seemed to lighten considerably between my classmates and me. Quidditch practices were light-hearted and enjoyable and classes were…well, you know, normal. Boring.

The slightly scary thing is that we never figured out what happened to his broom. Professor Dumbledore himself had gone over it and found that there wasn't a thing out of place and it showed no signs of having ever been cursed in the first place. This, needless to say, put most of the Gryffindors on edge.

James had personally thanked me for catching him (and politely did not mention how I nearly dropped him) and even given me a "man-hug". Not like the usual sentimental hugs girls liked to give. A "man-hug" involves much back thumping, sideways grins, and handshaking.

"You're good with charms, right?" Sirius asked.

"Yes..." I said suspiciously, closing my book on my Herbology essay, "Why?"

"We need you're expertise with a little...project of ours," his friends snickered which only upped my suspicion/curiosity.

"All right," I said a little warily, sitting on the couch, being extra careful not to look James in the eye.

…or the rear.

"I'll bite," I said, "What's up?"

"We need to make a tracking device,"

I faltered. It was like a phrase right out of a spy movie…

"My I ask _why _exactly?" I asked sounding rather alarmed.

"Well, we need a type of tracking device that can show us when a person is in a certain area with their name being labelled."

I breathed a sigh of relief. This didn't sound _too_ potentially dangerous.

"Like a moving map then?"

I think I might've hit a little close to home because the Marauders all glanced at each other.

"Yes," said Remus slowly, "Very much like a map,"

"Okay," I said, "What do you need me to do?"

"We need you to find a way to make this parchment, which we've already outlined the finer aspects the castle and grounds—"

"You're making a map of _Hogwarts?"_ I gasped, my surprise clearly evident.

"_Shhh!_" the all chorused, looking around to see if anyone had overheard.

"Don't go around _shouting_ it," Sirius hissed.

"Alright, alright, yeeesh," I rolled my eyes.

Remus continued, "We need you to find a way to link this parchment to the school itself so that it can display the students, teachers, animals and such and what they're doing at that exact moment in the exact place."

I bit my lip thoughtfully and resisted the urge to twirl my hair like Snape said I did when I was either bored or thoughtful, "I'm sure that there's a type of locater spell that you could establish between the castle and the parchment,"

Sirius rolled his eyes, "We've already figured that,"

I glared, "If you'd let me _finish," _I snapped, "You would know that I was trying to say that I have an idea." All eyes and ears were on me. "It would take a lot of work," I sighed, "But if you used the _trouvenour _tracking charm on every corner of the common room, for example, and if you connected it to the map with a simple spell-connector or tying charm like the _juxtaponner _spell so that the room's contents is reflected on the parchment…" I trailed off, "You would be able to watch the entire room on the map from the comfort of anywhere in the castle. So to do all of Hogwarts…" Again, I trailed off.

"It would take a lot of work," James finished, sighing.

I nodded, "Lots and lots of work,"

"This actually makes sense," Remus murmured to himself thoughtfully, "And then I suppose we'd have to supply it with something so that it can run on it's own magic…"

"Brilliant job, mate!" Sirius cheered ecstatically, scribbling notes down, "We would have _never _figured that one out!"

I shrugged offhandedly, "No problem," What can I say? Charms are my forte.

"What can we do to repay you?"

Again, I said, "It was no problem." (But feel free to kiss up to me for as long as you'd like) "You guys don't owe me anything," Quite frankly I didn't even want to think about what the Marauders would try to give me to get out of a debt.

"Oooh, but we _insist, _Li," smirked Sirius, saddling over my side of the coach, "C'mon, there's got to be _something _we can do! Not only did you help us out with our _project _but you got James off his big arse into his Quidditch mode!"

"And _saved _his —er—big arse on the Quidditch pitch," Remus added.

"I would just like to say that my arse is in no way shape or form on the large side, thank you," James' response was muffled by the couch cushions that he was burying his face in tiredly.

Well as a matter of fact I can't help but agree; it was just very flattering muscular curve—oh dear, I really am sensing a series of serious potential problems with this…

* * *

For the most part, I tried to prevent my being alone with James as much as I could, (which was in no way amusing) but occasionally it was unavoidable. Especially when he was trying to apologise for being, well, an arse.

He had confronted me after lessons one day.

"Hey, if you ever need help in Transfiguration, let me know, alright?" he said, "I really owe you for…you know, everything." Hm, he could've been referring to several numerous things. _One: _I helped him resolve things with Danielle. _Two: _I got him to play Quidditch again. _Three:_ I totally saved him from dying. Or _four: _all of the above. "Even though I explicitly told you not to do anything or get involved in anyway. But thanks. Just don't do it again." Option one, then. Of course…

But he looked so cute when he was trying to apologise even though he really sucked at it. It took most of my will power not to jump at the opportunity of him and me in a library alone for tutoring, but I knew that I would do something stupid like giggle or bat my eyelashes or something that would totally not be man-ish.

James scratched his head, which really only ruffled his hair even more, "And I'm sorry I wasn't exactly the nicest bloke on the block before. Nothing personal, you know?" he said.

I wanted to give him a "man-hug", but alas, man-hugs were reserved for more severe occasions, "Don't worry about it, man," I said, thumping him on the back. "S'no big deal,"

He breathed a sigh of relief, "Thanks, mate,"

Yeah, as in _soul _mate.

"Don't think about it so much, James,"

As much as I would love to say that our witty and charming conversation continued, it didn't. My bag suddenly split, sending all of my supplies across the ground and I cursed.

"I'll meet you back at the tower in a bit, James," I really just loved the sound of his name.

"See you, then," he waved.

Not a minute later, when he had retreated down the corridor, I heard:

"_Pssst, Li!"_

I nearly jumped out of my skin and dropped my books as I spun around.

"_Li!"_ the voice whispered loudly.

"Uh…?" Hearing voices never seemed to bode well in my books.

"_Li, over here!" _It was Nigel's voice I realised, relieved. I looked around the corridor, but it was deserted.

"Here?" I moved towards the painting of the drunken monks.

"_No, over _here!_"_ he hissed.

"Erm—here?" I tried, moving closer to the corner.

"Oh for the love of Merlin," he muttered and suddenly a hand reached to grab and drag me behind the statue of the one-eyed witch and I yelped in surprise.

"Li, I need your help," Nigel said immediately.

I was slightly put off by the close proximity and leant back, "Okay…" I said hesitantly.

"Li," said Nigel quietly, "Er—I need a guy's advice,"

I bit back a snort of amusement.

"O-okay," I said, trying not to appear as though I wanted to laugh, "Why ask me?"

"Because you seem to handle Agnes better than most of the guys in the school, so…"

My smile dropped clear off my face, "For the love of Merlin, _please _tell me that you're not in love with _Agnes!_"

Judging by the repulsive face he made, I assumed not.

"Merlin, no!" he sputtered, "I mean Jo!"

"JO?" I shouted, but he clamped his hand over my mouth.

"_Yes, _Jo," he hissed, "And I wanted to know what you do that makes Agnes go after you like that,"

I made a horrified face, "I don't want her to go after me!"

"Well, yes, but how do you do it?"

I sputtered indigently, "I don't _do _anything!" And if I did, I would appreciate it if someone told me ASAP, "Just—just ask her out!" I said it as though it were obvious…which it rather was. But come on, did I _look _like the Love Doctor here?

Nigel groaned, "But I can't _just _ask her out!" he said, "I mean, _how_ do I ask her if she wants to go get some food or something?"

I gave him a bewildered look, "Look, it's not that hard. _I_ asked her sit with me at breakfast this morning,"

Which, evidently, was not the best thing to say because, as platonic and normal as eating breakfast with a friend may be, Nigel reacted rather…erratic. Like an erupting volcano is erratic.

"YOU DID WHAT?" he shouted, grabbing the front of my robes.

"As _friends, _you dimwit!" I wheezed, kicking my air born legs. "Like we _always _do!" Good gravy, possessive much?

"Oh," his face loosened, as did his grip on my robes and he let me drop, "Right, sorry. Lost myself for a second there," he chuckled nervously.

I matched his chuckling sarcastically, "You reckon so?" I rubbed my neck.

But he went right back to the problem at hand, "But I don't know what to say!" It was strange watching the normally passive and collective Nigel lose his cool over something so trivial. But then again, I never really realised how much courage a boy had to pluck up before asking out a girl.

Luckily, I would never be doomed to such a position.

We both suddenly heard voices drift out of the classroom I had just exited with James minutes before. I immediately recognised them to be dull tone of Professor Binns and—dun dun DUUN—Joanna Channon.

"Look, here she comes," I said, motioning to the girl who had just exited the classroom and was walking down the hallway, "Just say, 'Hey, want to get a bite to eat?' She'll say 'okay', strike up a conversation and _voila, _a date," Not hard, right? But you can always expect a simple-minded boy to blunder up a simple plan.

Nigel made a desperate look between the apple of his eye and me, "I…I can't," he whispered, "Could you do it for me?" he asked hopefully.

"I hope you're not serious," I said flatly.

He stayed silent and I groaned.

"Look, she hasn't gotten to far off yet," I said, motioning to the girl half way down the hall, "I'll go get her for yo—" I was suddenly pulled back behind the statue and hushed hurriedly by Nigel.

We stood in awkward silence as he waited for her to turn the corner and for the Professor to drift into his room.

"You just lost an opportunity to get her alone!" I scolded him. "Women travel in herds! There are little to few nomads!"

"I know, I know!" he groaned in frustration, "Quick, let's go find her again."

Two hours later and Jo was still nowhere near our radar. She must've taken an unknown passage after she turned that corner.

It wasn't until an hour before dinnertime when we made progress. We were just outside the library when I had peered inside.

"Look, there, I think I've spotted her," I whispered urgently, tugging at his sleeve.

"Where?" Nigel craned his neck.

"_There,_" I pointed between the shelves, "Next to that short kid,"

"Which kid?"

"The _short _one!"

"There're two!"

"The one next to Jo!"

"The blonde or the brunette short kid?"

"_THAT _SHORT KID!" I snapped.

We both turned our heads at the sound of a startled cry to see The Short Kid running out the door and down the hall away from us.

"Great, now we've lost her," Nigel groaned.

"Why are you shouting?" said the usual dreamy voice of Joanna from behind.

We both jumped a foot in the air. Good grief, three months at this school and I think I had already lost three years off my life expectancy.

"All right, Li?" she said politely.

"Fine," Just another heart attack, no worries.

"Nigel?"

"Erhummerrum…."

Oh my giddy aunt, he was a lost cause.

"Nigel," she continued like she wasn't fazed at all, "I was wondering if you would you like to get a bite to eat with me down in the kitchens before dinner?"

"Eh..uh…ah…erherumm…"

"Say _yes, _you tit-head," I hissed. I was really beginning to think that I've been spending too much time with those Marauders. They're horrible on the vocabulary development but I think my insults have really progressed.

"YES!" he shouted out at last.

Good grief…I was surprised that Joanna didn't start running down the corridor with that kind of response she received.

Jo and I shared a knowing look that said: "Yeah, I knew he wouldn't get around to asking either,"

Boys.

With a sigh of relief, I watched a stunned Nigel be lead around the corner behind a rather slightly amused Joanna. Once they had left my sight completely, I allowed myself to chuckle and then gathered up my supplies to return to the Gryffindor tower.

Barely two steps into the common room, I heard Peter cry, "There he is!" and before I knew it, I was completely ambushed by my once-respected Quidditch captain.

"There's the man of the hour!" he said, pulling me underneath his armpit (which smelt like dung) and gave me an old fashioned noogie. What was I? Five?

My bags had been dropped by the entrance to the tower and I was being dragged back out by Sirius. Quite frankly I was not in the mood for his behaviour. I was tired, spent over two hours helping a love-sick Nigel ask out Joanna (which he failed miserably at), dinner was soon and I was _hungry._

"Black, get your bloody paws _off _of me," I growled dangerously.

I don't know why he stopped his ranting to laugh at me, but it only aggravated me further. He had practically dragged me up a flight of stairs saying things like, "Merlin are you gonna be thanking us by the end of the night!" and "Our best work yet, I'd say,"

"Granted it's a bit of short notice but—"

I was practically digging my nails up his ribcage. Didn't he feel _anything?_

"So we had to clear the place a bit before we got everything set up—"

"Sirius, what are you _talking about?"_ I managed to get out at last and realised that we had arrived at the astronomy tower.

"Our debt is about to be repaid, my dear chaser!" he declared, shoving me into a room. "Good luck, mate. Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" Sirius gave a mysterious wink and tapped his nose knowingly.

Huh…? I looked into the, what I had originally thought to be empty, Astronomy tower and felt my stomach fill with ice.

"Hi, Li!" chirped Agnes, ignoring my jaw dropping.

They had set me up on a _date!_

**:-:**

**-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

**Ooh, :cringes: bad idea on the Marauder's part, eh?**

**Lily, Lily, Lily...you just seem to keep digging yourself deeper and deeper. *hands Lily shovel* Keep my readers entertained! Aren't you all surprised by how quickly I updated!? I bet at least half of you had to double check and see if your eyes weren't deceiving you. (Which is not necessarily a good thing in the eyes of an author…)**

**And I really couldn't help bringing Tonks in like that XD I can only imagine what she was like as a child. Must've given her mother hell.**

**It seems like half of the story takes place in Hogsmead more than it does in Hogwarts…hmm…Anyways, Chapter ten is well underway and I'm hoping to be at Chapter Thirteen by the end of the year so0o0o send my your reviews and help motivate me! **

**Lil Enchantress: **Shucks, your reviews make me feel guilty…But there are much better L/J fics out there. "_Obsessive Lily Disorder_", _"A Walk in Your Shoes", _"_Kissing the Enemy_", and "_Absolute Shocker_" are among some of the best. I personally suggest my British bum-chum Cath, Procrastinatorstarting-2moro, and _all _of her fics. She's the queen of comedy; I swear on my entire stock of French chocolate she'll make you laugh out loud.

**Chapter Ten:**

"Trouble With Charlie"

90 percent finished

12 pages

_Due: _13/15 December

**Involves:**

Another Lily/Snape confrontation

The Ravenclaw/Slytherin Quidditch match

France

The name _Evangelista_

And the types of situations French Chocolate can get you in


	10. Trouble With Charlie

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **18 December 2006  
**Chapter Ten:  
**"**Trouble With Charlie"**

**:-:**

Two hours later, I stormed back into the common room, slamming the portrait closed behind me.

"Ouch, dear, that wasn't necessary…"

"Hey, look! Li's back!" said Peter to Sirius who was

His face brightened almost wickedly. The face of evil, I tell you. "Ah, we didn't expect you back for at _least_ two more hours! You must be pretty quick, eh?" he winked.

I'm assuming that _"What the hell is wrong with you?"_ was not the answer he was expecting.

Conversation in the Gryffindor common room suddenly died.

I was _furious_. I had _tried_ to be polite and tell Agnes that I had agreed to tutor a younger student that evening. I had _tried_ to tell her that I wasn't hungry. I had _tried_ to climb down the roof.

In the end, I told her that I needed to be violently sick. That was after she tried to kiss me.

I—was—not—happy.

_Especially _with Sirius—_bloody_—Black.

"How _dare _you set me up on a date like that!" I wanted to smack him, but I suppose that would've been too girly…I just don't have the heart to really punch someone.

"But," squeaked Peter, "We thought you were just too timid to ask her yourself…"

"HAVE I EVER COME OFF AS _TIMID?"_ I roared. Really now, I was a _redhead. _I wore my emotions right on my sleeve, which was why I had many, _many _more problems with James than I did at the beginning of the year. Not to mention, it was _me _who had gotten the team into that spot of trouble with Christian Dupont. Timid my _arse_. "I obviously had a _reason _why I didn't ask Agnes out and I still do!"

Sirius still looked the least fazed, "Merlin, Li, we just thought you'd want something to do. You never have anything interesting on Saturday nights. You just sit in the common room and do your homework for Christ's sake."

"You just don't date people because you're bored or available!" There's that faithful redhead temper, good timing as always, "You have to like the person! Genuinely!" I was so furious. And the worst part was that Marauders didn't even understand _why!_ Well, perhaps James and Remus did some, (where was their opinions on this?), but certainly not Sirius and little Peter who practically idolised him!

"Merlin, Li, you sound just like a _girl_," Sirius gaped.

I was taken aback. I _was _a girl for Merlin's sake! I had _boobs! _This definitely put me under the category of feminine!

But of course, I could not tell them this. For the first time since August, I was growing really bothered with my predicament.

I settled on sending him a disgusted glare. I was so angry that without anything else being said, I stormed up to the dorm.

We didn't speak for the rest of the night, even when they entered the room to sleep.

Thankfully by morning we had cooled off considerably and last night's argument was a mutely decided non-discussable topic and sat together with the team like we had done ever since the season started. It did not escape my notice that the entire team surrounded me at mealtimes, though no one mentioned Agnes or cared to notice her as she huffed off to the far side of the table.

The owls arrived and Chudley seemed earn a fair share of giggles and short lapses of silence when he arrived at the table.

Seriously, of all the owls that my uncle could've picked, he had to buy me one that says "whooooore" instead of "whoooooo" like all the others. Wonderful.

I gave him some bacon and shooed him away hurriedly.

The envelope was covered in funny quotes and muggle stickers that I had found amusing until I flipped over the front of the envelope and read, in bright, bold green letters: "_CHERLYL & ANATOLIA ONT UN PROBLEME SERIEUX AVEC CHARLIE! AIDES-NOUS S.V.P.!__"_ Or, "Cheryl and Anatolia have a serious problem with Charlie! Help us, please!"

Great. Now I had to play the mediator that was a thousand miles away from the actual problem.

"Wassat?" asked Sirius, leaning over my should, "More Spanish?"

I rolled my eyes, "No, just some letters from _France,_"

"You think you would've picked up on the difference considering you've come to my vacation house in France since you were twelve," James said from across the table.

Sirius waved him off dismissively, "It's all Greek to me,"

_Cher Lily,_

_You must've been sending me some amazing good luck vibes because I got an E on my Charms test! The professor said that the grade brought my marks up a whole letter! I hope they're giving you a challenge over there in Charms, Merlin knows the professor over here hasn't stopped singing your praises since you left. For the first ten minutes of class it's always "Lily used to…" "Lily was the best at…" "Lily was my favourite student…" _Lily, Lily—sodding—Lily. _No offence of course, it just makes the rest of us look bad._

_But all niceties aside now, you're not going to believe this. Charlie, being the problem child she is, went on a rebelling spree. She got her naval pierced (it took us _hours_ to convince her not to get her tongue done as well), flat out refuses _not_ to wear fishnets over the school tights, dyed her hair purple—_the muggle way—a_nd to top it all off, she banished an entire month's supplies of meat and fish from the kitchens because she's against eating animals. She has detention until the staff can restock their meat supplies, has been put on suspension from the Quidditch Club until further notice, and is not allowed out on the weekends._

_Are you sure you can't come back just for a day or two? Charlie really needs her babysitter._

_Stay safe!_

_Love Cheryl,_

_Cher, Lils,_

_You knew that Charlie stole my shoes and you didn't tell me?! I was going out of my mind without them! They were the only shoes that would match the dress I wanted to wear to my sister's engagement party last July! Not to mention she got this horrible stain on them and I don't even want to _guess _what it might have been. I am not happy. Especially when I caught her pulling them out from underneath her bed just before she was going to sneak out to the pub._

_Which she was almost promptly thrown out of after getting into a string of _bar fights!_ We had the absolute worst time trying explaining to the nurse that she had just fallen down the stairs when she was wandering the corridors after hours._

_On a brighter note, the three of us have pulled our money together to get you an early Christmas gift. Well, actually, it's sort of a mutual present but you'll have to go get it at the Owl Emporium the first week of December first thing on your Hogsmead trip to understand!_

_Miss you lots,_

_Anatolia_

_P.S. Charlie said something earlier about missing you and your muffins. Do you have any idea about what she's talking about? I think she might've been drunk, but I can't tell anymore. Please tell me that this isn't something kinky. _(I didn't quite understand this because I had never baked muffins a day in my life…unless she was making some weird innuendo. Or was drunk. I hoped the latter.)

I recognised Cheryl's handwriting back on the parchment.

_I'm _anaemic_, Lily, I need my protein!_

Then it was Anatolia:

_They were my favourite heels!_

Then it seemed as though Charlie had gotten a hold of the parchment:

_Lily-billy, they're ganging up on me behind my back!_

Then Cheryl once again:

Forgot to mention, Charlie, (again), went the pub and got dru—

It looked like the parchment was suddenly yanked away right out from under the quill but I had a feeling that a few more letters on the end of the French adjective would've spelt "drunk".

In a way, it was kind of nice to know that everything back at Beauxbatons fell apart without me.

But how on earth did they know I had a Hogsmead trip that weekend...? Crazy omniscient best friends…

It was the weekend of the Ravenclaw-Slytherin match and somehow I found myself not with my fellow Gryffindors, but with _Snape_. I'm not quite sure how it happened, but I was walking down the grounds to get to the stands by myself, and then he just seemed to appear right out of nowhere at my side.

He said: "Hello,"

I answered: "Hello,"

"No Gryffindor posse?"

"No Slytherin cohorts?"

We had arrived at the stadium and then we were watching the game together.

Funny how life works out, yeah?

He, much like James, is actually a rather half-decent person when he's not busy being an arse or blackmailing.

The two teams appeared to be evenly matched, we agreed. The Slytherins' strong point was their exquisite keeper, but their weaknesses were their chasers. Ravenclaw's best attribute was definitely their beaters but it looked like their seeker hadn't a clue to what he was doing.

I cringed slightly as the Slytherin chaser took a rather painful looking blow to a bludger when he wasn't paying attention. I heard Snape snort in disgust beside me.

"_I_ used to play the lead chaser for Slytherin," he said stiffly, "Last year, actually," I must've looked surprised because Snape rolled his eyes. "I'm not playing now because your marauding idiots injured my right shoulder and we didn't get to the hospital wing quick enough for it to be fully healed." My jaw slowly dropped, "It was right before the championship game against Gryffindor. We didn't have enough time to train the reserve chaser so I told them I would play anyways." As he barked out a short meaningless laugh, I realised how short and direct his sentences were, "But Black and Potter sandwiched me and threw me into the goal posts and damaged my shoulder _again_."

"That's awful," I whispered, finding it hard to think of my four roommates the same way I had before.

He sneered, "I don't want your pity, girl,"

I hoped no one heard him address me as such and I asked him rather hotly, "Then why are you telling me all of this? Story time?" I said sarcastically.

"Because you intrigue me," he said simply.

_I _was intriguing? Woah. What have I done that so intriguing lately? Was it the fact that I was a sixteen-year-old girl pretending to be a boy so I could play Quidditch? Or was it the fact that I had issues with minding my own business and sticking my nose where it didn't belong and learning all kinds of interesting information?

Oh bugger, of all the times I chose to be intriguing...

"You jinxed James' broom didn't you?" I realised out loud, "Y-you did it for revenge!"

Snape barely inclined his head and gave me a lazy look, "Figured that out, have you?" he shrugged, "It's not as though you can tell anybody about it, isn't it?"

He was right. All he had to do was send an anonymous note to a professor and I was screwed. I continued to gape openly.

"It was a rather interesting spell I found when I was tutoring that fourth year Quinlin, or Quirrell or something rather," he went on.

"Wuh-_ell,_" I said, dragging out the word into two syllables, still stunned by the revelation and wondering why he was telling me this. I also briefly considered my safety in jeopardy near him, "Why don't you go hang out with your friends then? I'm sure they'd love to hear your _fascinating _tale of having nearly _killed _Gryffindor's lead chaser."

"Merlin, you really _are _dense," he said with disbelief.

"And you really _are _charming," I retaliated as I rolled my eyes. The paltry insults were grating on my nerves.

The crowd gasped loudly and ducked behind their neighbours as a rogue bludger flew near the stands and the Slytherin beater, Michael McCormick, dove almost off of his broom to protect his classmates. Audibly, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Snape and I were sitting in the Hufflepuff stands—neutral territory, you see—and I was actually rather surprised that McCormick tried so hard go get to the bludger. Don't let it ever be said that Slytherins don't have consciences. I actually felt rather bad for all the nice once that got a bad reputation because of this pureblood nonsense.

He went right back to the conversation, completely unfazed, "There's a _reason _why I don't socialise, Evans. I'm _different,"_

I looked him, curious and slightly anxious, "How so?"

"I can memorise ten pages of potions notes in under five _minutes," _he started, staring at me with wide imploring eyes that begged me to understand. He leaned in closer and hushed his voice, "I know hexes and curses that the professors at this school could never even _dream _about," This made me rather nervous… "I could have taken extra classes and already have _graduated _last year but I chose to stay with my peers and study independently."

"What are you _talking about?"_ I asked at last.

Another exasperated sigh, "Give me your quill and parchment," he demanded.

Reluctantly, I handed them. The only reason I brought them to the match was because Sirius wanted the team to take notes on Ravenclaw's and Slytherin's strategies. Which I had totally neglected…

He ranted incoherently under his breath and the quill slid over the parchment in a flourish. I watched his mouth crease into a soft line and his brows furrow in concentration. There was no sneer or hatred in his eyes like most of the student body saw; it was just Severus Snape.

Less than a minute and a half later, he handed the parchment back to me and I could only stare at the surface's contents.

There was the Michael McCormick, the Slytherin beater, who had just flown by to swing at the bludger with the _exact _same expression he had worn in reality not moments ago. His arm was poised with the club in his right hand and it looked like he was about to slide off his broom. Snape included a couple of the students in front of us and even drew the complicated design of one of the girl's scarves. Severus had done justice with the shading from the setting sun and if it were coloured, I would've thought it to be a picture. He hadn't looked up once.

It suddenly made sense why he could study so easily and get top marks. It also seemed to explain how he had immediately recognised my—er—figure on the train last September.

"One-hundred percent photographic memory," he said, "It's actually not too uncommon to find in children but few parents ever notice it and it fades before there's chance for the ability to be developed."

As I handed the parchment back to him and watched Severus stuff it indifferently into his bag, I suddenly felt bad for him. He seemed so…

Alone.

School must've come easy for him and his lack of effort was probably envied or raised suspicion about his marks. I was willing to bet that he didn't have the patience to study with people because they would hold him back. And though he wasn't necessarily ugly, standing next to any one of the Marauders, he seemed the most undesirable.

Before I could stop myself, I asked him, "Do you go to Hogsmead?"

"I just go down there to see the Hog's Head folk every now and then," Snape said coolly, "Then I head back up,"

Vaguely, I could hear the Slytherin stands cheer as their seeker made a victory lap around the pitch.

* * *

"And t-then, ha ha…and then, James just _ate _it!"

Everyone laughed at another anecdote of Sirius'.

It was the weekend when I was walking down to Hogsmead with the team, discussing Quidditch tactics (of course) that we would use on our last match before the winter holidays.

The month of November had gone by so fast that I wasn't even sure it had really happened. Between classes, Quidditch, and Snape, my calendar was fully booked.

I was exited that I would be going home for two weeks, and I couldn't wait to figure out what the girls had sent me—sincerely hoping that it wouldn't be anything too girly.

With that thought, I had silently decided that it would be best if I separated myself from the Quidditch Bunch in order to pick up my present.

They waved me off cheerfully and began to walk towards Honeydukes. Following the signs that the town had posted (I still didn't know my way around), I began to look for the Owl Emporium and I thought that I had seen Snape walk by, but I must've been mistaken because he said that he doesn't usually hang out in Hogsmead that much.

I could hear laughter ringing all throughout the street.

Actually, it sounded like rather familiar laughter.

So familiar, that when I turned the corner, not only did I have a growing sense of dread, and not only did I _just _see the Emporium, but my old Beauxbatons roommates, Anatolia, Cheryl, and a newly purple-haired Charlie.

**(A/N: This was going to be the end of chapter nine before I changed my mind****...)**

Of course, I did the most logical thing in my mind:

Turn on my heel and run like hell was after my head.

Not that it got me far, of course, because almost immediately I as I turned to run around the corner, I accidentally threw myself on top of some poor soul.

Well, Severus Snape, I mean.

I had to clamp my hands over his mouth as he nearly shouted when he fell backwards and I shushed him frantically once we had collided with the ground.

I wish that Webster's Dictionary had thought of a stronger word for awkward.

"Sorry!" I said in an urgent whisper, looking over my shoulder to see if anyone had seen, "My old classmates—"

"Are here," he finished. However, as it were, my hand was still over his mouth so it came out as "Urr heerrrr,"

I gasped, "You _knew?"_

He forcefully removed my hand and snapped, "_Yes, _I knew. That's why I turned back to find you." I stared at him dumbfound and he rolled his eyes, "How many Beauxbatons girls come to Hogsmeade on the weekends and start blathering about in French talking about a red-head named _Lily?"_ He must've guessed my name considering I had never told him.

"Oh," I said dumbly and then after a second I realised, "You speak _French?_"

He gave me a look that plainly said _'duh'_. Jeebes, first Remus, James and now even _Snape?_ My own uncle didn't even speak French!

"French, Spanish, marginal German and a phrase or two in Chinese," He said, rolling his eyes at my stunned face, "Would you get off me now?" Snape asked my dryly, "I only have two kidneys,"

"Actually," I said sounding well informed, "You only need—"

"One, yes I know that," he interrupted, "But it won't do me any good if you crush them _both,_"

I rolled my eyes. I didn't like it when he was wearing his smarty-arsey pants. I also cringed when I continued to hear the laughter of my old roomies.

"Now would be nice..."

"Eh? Oh," I hadn't noticed that I didn't move, still caught up in my thoughts. I crawled off of Snape and even helped pull him to his feet, and watching as his emphatically dusted his robes and adjusted his tie.

"Good luck," he said, near the exit of the alley.

"Wait!" I hissed, pulling him back, "What am I supposed to do?"

Snape gave me a flat look, "You're a smart _girl," _he said, "You figure it out,"

"But I...!" And then it hit me, "Oh..._OH!_"

Duh, Lily!

Snape slowly nodded his head, brows nearing the top of his forehead, probably silently agreeing with my inward _Duh, Lily! _statement.

"But I'm not good at transfiguration!" I said desperately, "I can't transfigure my clothes! I mean, I could easily charm my hair but—"

Snape sighed, "You're pathetic," he said.

"Hey!"

He didn't have to be so upfront about it...

But he continued, unperturbed, "How long do you think it will take to get rid of your friends?"

Well, I inwardly thought, the French really like to talk a lot...and then there's eating...and shopping...and more talking...and tea time...and then we needed to talk about boys...perhaps some more shopping and...hmm...

"Er...maybe five or six hours, I'd guess," I answered. Even that was really pushing it.

He rolled his eyes and with a wave of his wand and a quietly muttered spell, my clothes writhed on my person as if alive until I looked down and realised that I was wearing a nice pair of light-wash faded jeans, and a white blouse under a green cable-knit sweater.

Who knew that Severus Snape had such good taste in muggle women's clothes?

...actually, I didn't really want to ponder too much on that subject.

"Five hours. Eleven o'clock," he told me, "And then your coach turns into a pumpkin, Cinderella," I had heard him well enough, and I even remember thinking that Cinderella had until midnight, but I wasn't really listening, "Don't forget to fix your hair," he said.

I quickly did as I was told.

"Do I look okay?" I asked him, twirling around, nearly falling over do to my lack of coordination.

He rolled his eyes at my antics, "You're fine. Go,"

"Thank you!" I gushed before throwing my arms around his shoulders. I mean, this guy really saved me. I felt his shoulders stiffen and a muscle twitch in his arm. You would honestly think that this guy has never been...er, actually I can imagine that he probably hadn't been hugged by many females before. "See you!" I said in my pretend-hush whisper and ran out to greet my friends.

I was glad I let my hair down; it felt so nice to have it whack me in the face again instead of ticking my ears and now it was once again dancing in the wind instead of just being slightly ruffled.

Honestly, I wasn't sure if I was happier to have my old hair back of that fact I was about to meet my old friends after half a year.

The scenery was wonderful. Hardly a cloud in the sky and perfect sweater weather. I took in a deep breath of brisk autumn wind and…nearly choked on my hair.

Coughing and gagging as I attempted to dislodge my hair from my throat I heard someone—and I had a fair idea who—scream, "_Lily!"_ and I was suddenly swooped up into one of the most painful bear hugs ever to be heard of in all man—or _woman_-kind.

"_S-salut_—" cough cough "—_Charlie_," hack hack...

"_MON DIEU, BILLY-GOAT!" _She shouted, in my ear might I add, "YOU'VE SURVIVED!"

Indeed, I had. But if Charlie continued to squeeze the very last bit of air out of my lungs, I wasn't sure how much longer I would last.

"_Christ, let her _breathe, _Charlie!" _I heard Cheryl say as if reading my very thoughts. I shuddered; she had an uncanny knack for Divinations actually…

But before I knew it, the three of them had practically formed a kind of human barrier around me that involved much squealing and squeezing of the Lily.

"_We want to meet all of your blokes!"_

"_Er, about them…"_

"_Can we see the Quidditch team?"_

"_Uuh…"_

"_How are your classes coming along?"_

"_Mmhm…"_

"_Good god, the chocolate up here blows, you know that right?"_

"I uh…" "Do you have a boyfriend yet?"

"Hmermumnoo…"

The questions came a mile a minute and felt my head start to spin.

"_Why don't we just go shopping?" _I suggested weakly.

The three shared looks, "_Naah," _they chorused.

"_So are you the only female member on your Quidditch team?" _Cheryl asked, direct and to the point.

I gulped again, _"You could say that…"_

The girls grinned widely in pride that only made me feel ten times worse.

"So this means that your team mates are a bunch of strapping young lads?" Ana asked slyly, a sneaky smile playing at the corner of her mouth. Charlie and Cheryl were snickering and throwing me knowing glances.

"_Er, yeah, but you can't meet them today," _I said hurriedly.

Their chatter stopped.

"_Why can't we meet your Quidditch team?" _Cheryl implored, looking disappointed_._

"_Because," _I said.

"_Because _why_…?" _Ana asked slowly.

"_Well…_" I scratched my neck nervously. Best to not prolong the pain. Make it quick and easy. Like a Band-Aid. I wondered if they'd be able to identify the body considering Lily Evans had never been seen in the area…major gulp. "_They students and teachers up here think I'm a boy…_" I said in a twinged voice.

The all frowned.

"_You've always been a bit of a tomboy growing up," _Said Ana.

"_And my brother has always considered you one of the lads," _Cheryl added.

Charlie motioned to my jeans, "_But I'm sure if you just show a bit of leg—"_

"_No," _I said quickly. Of course they would make things difficult for me. "_I mean that technically…technically I—I attend school under the name Li Evans,"_

Their brows furrowed.

"We've never called you Li before," Ana looked even more confused and I had to cringe.

"_I know…that's because it's a boy's name. And it's how I go to school. With a boy's name. And play Quidditch. With a boys name…you know, like a boy…" _I trailed off, closing my eyes and biting my lip as I waited for my friends to catch on.

"_WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU DONE, YOU STUPID GIRL?_" Charlie, I thought, sharp as a tack as always.

"_Please don't be angry!_" I whispered, wanting to usher the attention away from me. Charlie and the girls were opening and closing their mouths like they wanted to say something but couldn't find the right words. Sort of resembled a bunch of fish. _"It was, um, sort of my idea! And I really want to play Quidditch, all right?" _It came out a bit harsher than I intended.

"_Lily,_" Charlie was able to get out at last, "_Tu_…_tu es trop stupide!" _Thanks. "_Mon Dieu, tu ne sais pas qu'est-ce que t'as fais!"_

I didn't know what I was doing? The fact that I've been able to get away with it for nearly three months meant nothing?

"_Lily," _Anatolia said almost sadly, she knew next to no English just as Cheryl, "_You…I can't even…_think _of what to say,"_

"_How about 'Since we're friends, I'll support you no matter what'?" _I tried dryly.

Cheryl decided to have a say in the argument as well, "_You're sixteen years old, Lily! You shouldn't be worrying about sports like this—"_

"_O__f course she should worry about sports!" _Charlie yelled. Right then, I wasn't sure if she was supporting me or not. I sighed deeply and let her continue ranting, pacing, and sulking (all at one time, might I add). "_It's just the fact that you didn't tell us! I'm your _best friend _and you _didn't tell me a damn thing! I would have supported you no matter what!"

I hung my head, suddenly feeling ashamed. I knew that Charlie wouldn't have been able to stop me even I had told her…so why didn't I?

"_I'm sorry," _I mumbled into my jumper though it was a rather late apology.

"'_Sorry' is not about to re-do the past three and a half months, Lily!" _she shouted.

"_Well what do you want me to do about it now?" _I snapped at last, "_What _would _you have done if I'd told you that I was going to—to pretend to be a _boy _for the love of Quidditch?" _By the cold face she gave me, I guessed that she hadn't thought to much about it, "_Or are you just really jealous that _I _was the one who got to leave the school and get a new beginning, that _I _was the one who got to play the sport, and who doesn't have to act out, wear black or dye my hair because I want to feel different—"_

"Shut up," she said, switching to English, but I barely noticed.

"—_and who got to have that adventure that you always dreamed about!"_

She pushed me down so hard that for a moment I had lost all the breath in my lungs. I looked up angrily at my supposed best friend in all her furious glory; my narrow-eyed, purple-haired, and nostril flaring best friend.

We did nothing but stare at each other for a moment before she sighed and helped me off the ground.

Sometimes we didn't need to speak our apologies to know that we were forgiven.

Charlie was still giving me a piercing stare, "_We need to talk." _She gritted.

"_Over tea?_" I suggested hopefully.

"_And chocolate," _she added, linking an arm through mine.

Ana and Cheryl, though still stunned by my cross-dressing habits, looked relieved and joined our chain as we slowly marched down the street with me steering them towards the Three Broomsticks. That is, until Ana stopped suddenly.

"_Lily,_" she said, blinking, "_Are you…are you sleeping the boys' dorm?"_

All eyes were on me and I bit my lip and fought back a groan.

Ana looked at me with a sudden playful glint in her eye, "_Oh the things Lily has probably seen,"_ she said gleefully.

"_We are talking about this _right now," Charlie growled, painfully dragging me through the glass doors and didn't bother to wait for the waitress to seat us and she made her way to an unoccupied table.

I heard someone let out a strangled gasp and the squeaking of their chair against the floor as they stood, "Chi-chi!"

Charlie froze and yet her grip on me seemed to only constrict more painfully, "Sirius," she acknowledged stiffly.

My eyes widened like saucers and I snapped my head around to look at my friend, "You two _know _each other?" I said, stunned.

Slowly tearing her eyes away from the Gryffindor Quidditch captain, Charlie explained to me, "My vacation house is near his friend's and I see them every now and then in the summer,"

"And _Chi-chi?"_ I asked.

Charlie's shoulders seemed to tense and her eye twitch, with a sigh she said, "Sirius was having a dyslexic moment when he read my nametag to hit on me and somehow completely missed the _A-R-L _part of _Charlie._"

"We hang out in Spain all the time!" he threw in facetiously.

"_France," _she corrected in exasperation, "It's in _France,"_

Well that explained the whole "Is that Spanish?" ordeal back on the train…

Wait a second. _Hold the bleeding phone_.

Charlie had a house in the south of France. Charlie knew Sirius from France. Sirius stays at a friend's house in the summer. James has a house in the south of France. Charlie knew James.

CHARLIE KNEW JAMES.

Sodding hell, it was by a _sheer miracle _that I had never run into them when I was visiting her on break! Which now, I wasn't sure if I should be disappointed about it…

"Charlotte?" I heard Remus say. I turned and saw him with a tray of drinks that he had carried over, "Is that you?"

"Remus!" she said slightly more brightly, "How are you?"

"I'm wonderful," he said conversationally, "I didn't recognise you with your…purple hair," How did he always manage to attract the girls with strange coloured hair…? "What brings you to Hogsmead? I doubt it was because of Sirius."

I looked at her, trying to read the expression on her face, but it was as blank as an unused canvas.

"Just thought I'd see what Scotland was like," she said, though it looked rather forced.

"Would you like to have a seat?" he offered, as always, being generous.

I sent her a telepathic distress signal, clearly telling her that we could not.

"Of course,"

…which she obviously didn't receive.

Everyone scooted over to make room for us while Remus remained standing, motioning to Madam Rosmerta for three more drinks. When his attention returned he motioned to the group he said, "This is the Gryffindor Quidditch Team. Maud Brooks, the keeper, Jordan McClain, the seeker, Joseph Daniels, beater, Sirius Black—for those _who don't know_," he added once Sirius had opened his mouth, having thought that _everyone _on the continent knew his name, "—beater and captain. And we seem to be short of a couple chasers at the moment but this is Victor Bishop."

Each name was accompanied by a polite nod or wave.

"James went off to wallow in his self misery again or something," Sirius rolled his eyes expressively.

"I'm afraid that Li isn't here either," Remus said, not noticing how my head automatically snapped in the direction that my second name was said, "But I'm sure we'll see him sooner or later,"

Try later. Waaaaaay later. Borderline never, actually.

"Charlie," she said stiffly, raising a hand as an introduction. We looked at our two friends who stood there quietly, not understanding a word other than the names.

"_Vos noms," _I prompted.

"Anatolia LeCroix," she said in a sort of wispy lusty voice that made me cringe.

"Cheryl Hergue," short and clip.

"They don't speak English," Charlie clarified for the imploring eyes. Sirius seemed slightly too delighted by the idea.

"And who are you?" Sirius smiled charmingly at me. Wow, it had been such a long time since I'd been hit on.

"I'm Lily Evan—" Oh, wait. There can't be two Evans, "Evan...gel...is...ta?" Sure. Let's go with that.

His grin widened, "Well, _enchanter,_ Lily Evangelista_,"_ Good grief, colour me pink and call me surprised: the boy _knew a proper word in French. _Hopefully he knew that it was _French _and not Spanish for goodness' sake. "_I _am Sirius Black,"

"Charmed," I rolled my eyes.

Sensing how he wouldn't be getting any further than my short answers, Casanova decided he would try the girls who _couldn't _answer, much to my annoyance. But conversation soon started up again as the Butterbeer arrived.

"_How did you meet Sirius?" _I whispered to Charlie out of the corner of my mouth. Even though I said it in French, I was afraid of Remus overhearing.

She leaned to the left slightly, "_I already told you. I work at a café to earn some extra money during the summer. That's how I recognised Danielle, Sirius, Remus, Peter and James from being their waitress."_

"So your all from Beauxbatons, then?" Maud asked, bringing us into a conversation, "Is it like, cold in France?"

Charlie and I exchanged flat looks, "Scotland is further north…" I said, implying that it would be technically colder in general.

"Oh," he said.

"Have you ever been in the area before? Or Scotland in general?" Victor asked conversationally.

"Yeah, you look familiar," said Jordan. I realised belatedly that he was speaking to me.

"I-I do?"

Charlie said nothing but raised her eyebrows at me, clearly going to enjoy watching me worm out of this one.

"She does look awfully familiar, now that I think about it," Remus said thoughtfully.

"Well there can't be many redheads in your school now," Charlie said bitterly into her mug.

I sent her a quick glare and silently pleaded her not to encourage them.

"Well," laughed Sirius, "After Li Evans—that crazy loud mouth chaser of ours who's probably off pestering Prongs—the only red-head that comes to mind is that Ravenclaw girl Carol, and then Beth from—"

My face had glanced at the table once the name Evans had been brought up and I watched as their eyes would casually glance at Sirius who was speaking or in my direction to try to see who I resembled.

Too much attention.

"U-um..." I stammered, squeezing myself out of the booth, "I—I have to be...somewhere. Bye," and I ran. Boy, was I going to be in good shape for that Quidditch match, I thought as I threw open the doors.

I knew that Ana, Cheryl, and especially Charlie, would be worried about my sudden leaving and would want to come after me, but if Sirius acted just the way I wanted him to, the girls would be stuck staying there for a while...

At least until they subject was changed.

Drastically.

So I was running—La di da da da da—and beginning to feel breathless—La la la di di da di—running running running running running—La la la la la la di da di—and I would keeping running running running running until I didn't feel like ru—_OOMPH!_

"_OOMPH!"_

"OUCH!"

"Mmhmmmferrr!" My face was in this person's chest. I sincerely hoped that it was not a girl...

"Oy..."

"_Désloé!"_ When in doubt, play the poor defenceless foreign girl and win their pity. I looked up to see who I had trampled onto this time, secretly hoping it wasn't Snape again, and found that I already knew the face.

A mildly disgruntled, but not at all angry face that happened to be beautifully carved and defined by a strong jaw and _just so happened _to belong to James Potter.

I couldn't really tell if this was a bad situation I was in, or...like fate decided I need a break. I soon then realised that not only was this _James Potter _I was lying on top of, but _I _was _Lily._

"_Tu va bien?"_ he asked me, leaning back on his elbows.

I stared at him. Admittedly, it probably didn't make me seem too bright and I mentally cursed myself for apologising in French.

"_O-oui," _I answered.

He smiled.

Oh yes, I could so totally hear the wedding bells.

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

**Okay fine. I'm a bad author who can't keep her word with her updating schedule. Blaarrgshnnfftt.**

**But, alas! **_**Another **_**cliffhanger?! Good grief, I'm on a roll! I wanted to keep going because I have the next seven pages written out, but I like to keep my chapters about ten or eleven pages long. (Ignore the fact that this is thirteen…)**


	11. The Spinster Race

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **26 December 2006  
**Chapter Eleven  
**"**The Spinster Race"**

**:-:**

We stared. For how long, I'm not quite sure.

"Erm…"

"Uh…"

"_Je peux pas respirer," _I can't breath, he said.

"_Merde, désolée!" _I gushed. A dead body was never a good thing to have on one's hands…I quickly leapt off of his chest (drool) and pulled him to his feet, wiping off his sweater in a fret.

Any excuse to touch his chest, really. Merlin, I'm horrible.

"_C'est pas grave," _he dismissed. Not a problem. James bent down to pick up the provisions he had dropped.

"Is that French Chocolate?" I asked, wide-eyed and staring at the half-opened parcel.

"Erm, actually yes," he said, sounding surprised, perhaps by my lingual switch.

I eyed the packaged with a curious look.

"You eat a lot of chocolate for a bloke," I said. Even more than Remus, I mentally added. And he was like a walking-talking vending machine. Bah, I hated men and their incredible metabolisms.

He looked mildly defensive, "They're gifts," he sniffed.

"Aaah, from a secret admirer, perhaps?" I asked with a sly grin even though it was rather forced when I could feel my heart sinking a little.

James looked a tad uncomfortable. As a matter of fact, he actually looked _shy. _How could I have never noticed this before? James Potter was absolute _rubbish _when it came to girls! No wonder he took it terribly when Danielle broke up with him!

"Lily Evangelista from _Arques, France _at your service," I introduced myself in order to give him an escape route and extended a hand.

"James Potter, Surrey, England. Nice to meet you,"

"Likewise. Sorry about the head-on collision," I said, giving an apologetic smile, "Still quite haven't figured out how to brake,"

Wait, was I…was I _flirting?_

He smiled crookedly but it still reached his eyes, "Don't worry about it. I didn't mind the fall too badly,"

AND WAS HE FLIRTING BACK?

"Do you want to get a drink?"

Woho, where did _that_ come from, Lily?

James gave me a clearly surprised look. Bet you anything he wasn't half as surprised as I was…

"To make up for it, I mean!" I added in a hurry, "I think I might've broken a box or two," I prodded the parcel.

James studied me for a moment, "Sure," Pause, "Actually, you look rather familiar. Do you come here often?"

I grinned widely and waggled my eyebrows, "Mister Potter, that was the worst come-on line I've heard in a while,"

James groaned and matched my smile as he covered his face with a free hand.

"I can't believe I just said that,"

I laughed and we began to walk down the road.

"This is my first time here," I lied smoothly, "I'm just staying for the evening. Do you go to Hogwarts?"

"Yup, I'm a sixth year," he said, "You?"

"Six year, too," I answered, "So…do you play Quidditch?" I asked in what I hoped sounded like an innocent voice.

His face seemed to brighten, "My parents swear that I could ride a broom before I could walk," We laughed, "I play chaser for my house team at the school,"

"Are you lot any good?"

He smiled charmingly, "I think we're going to do pretty well this year," his eyes told me that he thought that we were the best there was.

"Hmm," I said thoughtfully, "What do you think is your team's strongest points?"

James stopped walking and narrowed his eyes a bit, "You're not a spy for Slytherin are you?"

The thought never occurred to me, "Slither in where?" I feigned confusion again.

"Slytherin is another house team that we play before the holidays." He said stoically, "I just wouldn't be surprised if they hired someone to get information on our tactics and strategies."

"Now, now, I'm sure they wouldn't do that," I had to force my eyeballs not to roll, "After all, Quidditch isn't _everything,_" I said in an aloof sort of voice. At James stony look I added, "But it's right up there with oxygen," We laughed, but I made it a point to avoid talking about bringing up Quidditch again.

We found a small quiet-looking café and sat outside and were almost immediately approached by a waiter and ordered a round of Butterbeer.

"Help yourself," he offered, sliding the pile towards me generously. My eyes widened slightly and began shifting through. I lifted a box out of the way to find a small card flutter on the table. James was opening a small pack and hadn't noticed my finding it.

A small peak wouldn't hurt anyone…

I didn't read the whole thing because my eyes were dragged towards the bottom.

"Danny…?" I read off the card, my heart stopping for a split second. I was suddenly left feeling cold and dismayed.

"It's short for Danielle," he explained without any hint of bitterness as he reached out to take back the card embarrassedly. I already knew this, of course, but I suppose that James Potter didn't want people thinking that he had a guy in France sending him chocolate. People might talk…

"Girlfriend?" I asked, feigning oblivion and curiosity.

What was left of his smile disappeared, "No, it didn't work out between us," he said and I couldn't help but wonder if I would be learning anything else about their relationship as Lily Evangelista, "We write to each other every now and then," he then said, "Just to keep in touch. I'll send her some pumpkin pasties and she'll send me chocolate,"

"Sounds like a fair deal," I nodded, still silently hoping that their relationship was just as platonic as he described it, "And it's not awkward between you at all? I mean, if she knows that you still like her?" I was pressing a sensitive topic, I knew, but I was still curious.

He shrugged.

"There's not much I can do about the fact that the feelings aren't mutual. But we're still friends which is—wait, I never said I still liked her!" his eyes snapped up to mine and I looked away pretending to be busy opening another pack.

I offered him a piece of his own chocolate, "So…you're basically in your moping stage of the post break-up?" I decided.

James shot me a look as he took it, "I am not moping," he scowled before popping it in his mouth.

I waved him off carelessly, "Say what you will. I'm a girl—" God it felt so good to say that out loud, "—I know these things. What other boy wanders around on his own with a bundle of chocolate while his friends are inside a nice warm café with foreign French girls?"

He regarded me with a look that a five year old might when he's been outsmarted by his mother, "How long have you spoken English?"

"My whole life," I said, sounding more confident than I felt, "My father was English and my mother was French. Oh, hey, pass me that piece of the buttermilk chocolate, would you?" I didn't feel like elaborating on the death of my parents almost a year ago.

James slid the wrapper across the table and watched as I devoured what was given, "You eat like Sirius," he said flatly.

I rolled my eyes thoughtlessly, "Sirius could eat a cow if he was hungry enough," Upon James' surprised look of my mysterious knowing of his best friend that Lily Evangelista_ had never met before _I mentally cursed. Hastily, I added, "Charlotte and my friends told me that he ate a lot when I was at the Three Broomsticks,"

"Oh," he said, "So you're here with your classmates then?"

I nodded mutely (my mouth was full).

"So then why do you need the almighty powerful relief of French Chocolate?" he asked me. I was happy to see the light tone and even mild sense of humour in his voice.

I felt bad when I had to counteract it by having my eyes darken, "Let's just say that a family member wants me to be something I'm not," I tore off a large piece of chocolate and munched furiously. Merlin, I could just feel it all go right to my hips. Looking for another piece of endorphin-filled goodness, I stared at the table between us with a sombre stare.

"We have a problem," I stated suddenly and James snapped his head up and looked at me, concerned, "We're out of chocolate," I said sadly.

He stared at the empty table.

"Bollocks_,_" we muttered together.

"I'm still depressed," James admitted stonily.

"Ditto,"

We sat in silence and stared at the empty wrapper, each of us waiting for the other to come up with an idea.

"Hogsmead doesn't sell French chocolates, does it?" I said stoically.

"Nope," he answered with the same tone.

"No one in all of England sells real French chocolates, do they?"

"Nope,"

"It's not possible to conjure French chocolates, is it?"

"Nope,"

More silence.

"It's not possible to apparate or floo to France for a quick trip, is it?"

"N—wait, what?"

In France, we had to be seventeen to get our apparating licence. That's why I assumed the girls had chipped in their money to buy a train ticket or something here. But in the United Kingdom, however...

"Can you apparate?" I asked James with a sudden rigour.

"Yes, I just got my licence at the beginning of summer," He leaned back and studied my widely grinning face, suddenly in understanding, "_No,_" he said sternly, "Not going to happen. I've never even apparated two people before!"

"Oh come on," I whined, "Don't be such a spoil-sport,"

"I'm not a spoil-sport," he muttered moodily, folding his arms and glaring.

"Then quit being stupid," I told him, "We're both depressed and lacking in the chocolate department which therefore merits us a reason to apparate to France to get some!" It was simple logic!

"I don't even know you!"

I rolled my eyes. He had a point however. James had only known _Lily Evangelista _for less than an hour, I realised upon glancing at my watch. It was just past nine. The annoying thing was that he _had _known me for a couple months, never having realised it.

Partially because he was too busy being an arse.

"James, I'm not going to rape you," I told him in a serious tone with my hands on my hips. He gave me an incredulous look, "We need chocolate," I informed sternly him for the umpteenth time as I pointed to the wrapper-infested table.

We locked eyes for what seemed like forever. Or five seconds. Whatever.

"You're right," he conceded with a sigh.

I scoffed again, "Of course I'm right. That comes with the privilege of being Lily Evan...gelista." Nice save. Deserves an award, I say.

"I know a small muggle shop on the coast," he added.

"Brilliant!"

"And it has every single type of chocolate imaginable,"

"Even better!"

"And I get a discount,"

"What are we waiting for?" I shouted, grinning like a maniac, I.E. like always do, "Let's go!"

When James Potter shot me the fully intentional carefree smile, something inside my stomach disappeared. And seeing how I was already missing an organ in there, (remember that pesky appendix?), the selection was limited. He clasped my hand tightly and whatever feeling that had left my stomach returned and nearly went up my throat when we apparated.

It was like sucking a watermelon through a sodding _straw._ I felt nauseous and waited the extra split-second for it to end.

When our feet touched the ground, my eyes were still clenched painfully shut.

"Um...Lily?"

"Mmm,"

"We forgot to pay for the drinks,"

"Hmm,"

"And," he said after a moment's hesitation, "I don't...I don't think this is the shop,"

My eyes snapped open to see his slightly sheepish and nervous face.

"Aw_ hell! _Where did you apparate us to?" I demanded, stepping away from James to stare at him accusingly.

"I don't know! I told you I've never apparated with someone else before!" he replied defensively.

We both looked around wildly, neither of us recognising our surroundings. James Potter and I were in a dark basement of some sort with just a single flickering light bulb. I assumed that it was a warehouse, or the bottom of a store.

"Just apparate us back!" I shouted.

He took hold of my shoulder and scrunched his eyes up in concentration.

"Hurry up!" I shouted, shaking his arm. The dark always made me slightly nervous.

"I can't focus if you keep shaking my arm!"

I gripped it tightly, "I swear if—"

"I can't feel my fingers—let go!" I buried my hand in my pockets, but looped an arm threw his so that I would be apparated as well, "I used up too much energy…" he said, groaning.

"WHAT?" I shrieked, dropping his arm and began to pace.

"Okay," James said, reassuring himself more than me, "First things first, we _cannot panic—"_

"Stuck in a bloody foreign country with—"

"Second, we need to figure out just _where _we—"

"—don't even have any food!"

"And then we need to find a way to fire call or—"

I continued my pacing until I actually read one of the _French _labels on the wooden boxes and then soon realised that _all _of the boxes said the same thing...

"Hey, look!" I yelled excitedly, once again cutting off James' ranting as I jumped up and down, pointing to the nearest crate that just happened to be cracked and revealed the contents inside, "_Chocolate!_"

And that's how James Potter and I wound up stranded in France.

* * *

"I wonder if they're closed for the night," he asked out loud a short time later, leaning on the palm of his hand. The empty chocolate wrappers crackled underneath his fingers.

I, however, was not really paying attention. I had opened my...er...fourth? Fifth? Um, I had opened _a _box of dark chocolate, "Mmffhmm," and was eating all of its contents.

"Do you think we should leave them some money after everything we've eaten?" James asked.

"Nsshrff?"

"Maybe we should try to break down the door—"

"_James_," I exasperated, after having swallowed another chocolate ball, "You are _in a foreign country. _Surrounded by _chocolate. _Trapped in a _dark room _with _a girl. _Don't boys your age usually wait their whole life for this sort of thing?"

"Would you stop comparing me to everyone else?" He retorted, sounding rather offended.

I frowned at him. "You're strange,"

Indeed he was.

But he either didn't hear me, or chose to ignore the comment, "And it's almost quarter of eleven and I think it's about time—"

Time. Why did that word suddenly strike a chord? I had stopped eating, suddenly feeling sick to my stomach. Oh,_ no. _What was it that Snape had said? Six hours? Or was it five hours? Er, something about Cinderella, right? And she had until midnight, didn't she? Could I figure out a transfiguration spell to keep my clothes the way they were? Would James recognise me if I kept my hair long but was in_ Li Evan's _clothes? Would he ask questions? Would he even notice?

More importantly...why did I care so much?

"Lily?" James interrupted my thoughts smoothly.

"Y-yes?" I answered, suddenly feeling nervous.

"Are you alright? You haven't been eating for," he glanced at his watch, "five minutes,"

I gave him a mock-offended look, "Are you implying something, Mister Potter?"

He rolled his eyes. Obviously, there was a case of eye-rolling mania going around Hogwarts. "Well, you just suddenly look pale. Pale for a red-head, at least," he said.

"I'm...just tired, you know?" I shrugged, closing the box and putting it down, "I've got to be...getting back to Beauxbatons soon." I lied. I had to be hiding from everyone else when my clothes un-transfigured themselves.

"Oh," said James, looking away.

Wait...was he...was James Potter _blushing?_

"Are you okay?" I asked unsurely, "You look a little red in the face," Maybe he was getting sick...?

"I'm fine," he answered quickly.

For the first time in a while, things suddenly felt awkward between us. 'Us' as in me, _Lily Evangelista, _and James Potter.

"Do you want to try to apparate again?" I asked quietly.

"Yeah," he agreed, standing up and pulling me to my feet. We both had silently agreed to pay for our damage in the store basement and tossed the coins to the floor.

"We should do this again sometime," he chuckled.

I tried not to make my smile seem so sad, "Yeah," I said quietly, "We should,"

It was a shame that he didn't know we'd be seeing each other again in just a matter of hours back at the dormitory.

And seconds later, after the "watermelon through a straw" feeling, we were back in Hogsmead.

People were milling about and didn't spare us a second glance, which I was grateful for. The last thing I needed was somebody asking questions. James let go of my hands almost the second we landed and I, reluctantly, put them in my pocket.

"I'd better be going," James was the first to speak, "I didn't tell my friends where I'd be,"

I nodded, "Me neither," Since when had saying goodbye given me such a strange feeling in my core? It was the second time that I had a feeling like an organ was missing in my stomach and I sincerely hoped that I didn't have another appendix floating around in there.

He leaned in and I felt my heart leap in my throat.

"_A tout alors, Lily,"_

A kiss on the right cheek.

"_A bientôt, James,_"

And a kiss on the left.

I hope that he didn't hear me sigh in relief, or was it disappointment? _La bise, _or the hello and good-bye kiss on both cheeks, suddenly became my favourite French custom. I smiled softly as I watched him walk down the road, wishing that I could go with him. But after checking my watch, I realised that I only had five more minutes until I was, once again, Li Evans.

"What the hell was _that?_" hissed a voice from behind.

I hadn't been expecting Snape to be there, but I wasn't startled either. My face was serene and full of contempt, I barely acknowledged him because I was still watching James walk away.

"That," I said calmly, "Was James Potter,"

I could practically feel Snape roll his eyes, "Obviously," he said dryly, "But what I mean is _why _are you with him when you have less than five minutes to get rid of your French friends?" he snapped, "And don't tell me you were with _James Potter _the whole night after I specifically transfigured your clothes for your stupid little friends,"

I barely caught the insult.

"Yeah," I said slowly, almost like a yawn, "I was with James Potter,"

Snape let out a disgusted noise, "Of course you were,"

I finally looked at him and saw the displeasure clearly written out across his features, whether he was aware of it or not, and asked, "Why does me being with James bother you?"

"You were supposed to be getting rid of your old classmates!" He snapped again.

Somehow, I figured that there was more to it, but didn't press on.

"Sorry," I apologised.

He glared, "No. You're not,"

That statement kind of bugged me. There was the fact that, no, I was _not _sorry that I went out with James and the other fact that Snape knew this, too.

"Well, what would you like me to say?" I snipped, patience running dangerously thin.

"Nothing!" he said defensively, throwing around his arms, "Just go back to fawning over the _great _James Potter like the rest of the world and see if I care!" Snape didn't give me time to respond because he had stormed off into a pub, sending a blasting curse at a defenceless dustbin.

It caused me to jump, and only then did I realise that my time, however short it was, as Lily Evangelista was up. I sighed at the look of my familiar school clothes and then looked back out at Hogsmead. On the opposite side of the town, I saw a short while ways down the road, an angry Charlie, Ana, and Cheryl marching down to greet me, their faces not looking pleased.

Blimey, I just could not win at anything today.

I was lucky the street was deserted because what Charlie said next probably would've just blown my cover.

"_This isn't about Quidditch anymore is it?_" She screeched. "_This is about a _boy! _That bloody _Potter boy!" she pointed to the road that James had disappeared down.

I sighed, "_Charlie, it's always been about Quidditch. I can't help that he's my roommate._"

"_But you _could've _helped the fact that you _left us _at the café to go meet up with him and risk blowing your secret out of the water!"_

I cringed. She had a point there…

"_You were dancing around a sensitive topic!" _I defended, _"The team was starting to get suspicious!"_

"_SUSPICIOUS?" _she cried, _"You don't think that by being—!"_

"_Girls, come on now…" _Cheryl intervened quietly.

"_We don't exactly want this public now do we?" _Anatolia added.

"_IT DOESN'T BLOODY MATTER BECAUSE NOBODY SPEAKS FRENCH!__"_ Except James, Remus, Snape and even Sirius upon occasion. "_BUT WHAT _DOES _MATTER IS THAT _YOU—!"

"Charlie," I snapped, "_I can't deal with you right now,_" I said, turning to leave. It had just been _too _long of a night…

I heard her growl and slam her fist into something, "_SPINSTER RACE!"_ Charlie shouted, her hand raised and her finger pointed at me, which I immediately saw when I turned around to face her with a tired expression. "_Right here. Right now._" Her voice was even and cool.

The Spinster Race, I thought groaning. It was what Charlie and I had used back at Beauxbatons to settle a disagreement, for fun in the Quidditch Club, or just to blow off steam.

"_We don't have any boundaries," _I told her. Occasionally we would put in obstacles, but it looked like we didn't have any at our disposal.

She didn't hesitate, "_Around that abandoned building on the far end of Hogsmead and the flag pole to back here._" It was a triangular shape I noticed as I looked for the mentioned landmarks, "_If I win, you come back to Beauxbatons or if you don't play, I'll go to your headmaster."_

"_And if I win I stay?" _I guessed, glaring.

A curt nod and she held out her hand, "_Deal?"_

"Lily—" Cheryl tried.

"_Deal," _Sometimes someone just had to rise to Charlie's challenges and take her head-on.

Ana and Cheryl exchanged wary looks as Charlie conjured us a pair of brooms. We mounted and hovered in the air just inches away from each other.

"_Want to start us off, Cheryl?"_ I asked, setting my sights on the Shrieking Shack a good distance away.

She nodded mutely, a look of apprehension on her face.

"_This is a bloody barbaric sport, I tell you,_" Ana muttered, shaking her head, standing back.

"_Riders ready?" _she asked, waiting for each of us to nod, "_Good luck, girls…three," _My grip on the broom tightened and I refused to look to my left and study Charlie's face, "_…two…" _She wouldn't hold back, I thought with a sigh. She wanted me back at Beauxbatons badly, _"…_one_."_

But I wanted to stay at least twice as much.

Dirt and dust flew as we took off. Spectres on the street looked up as we flew above their heads and I silently hoped that the team didn't see me in fear of them asking questions later. I could just imagine Sirius drilling me for information about Charlie or demanding me why I always seemed to pick fights with foreigners…

The Shack was approaching and I made for making a tight turn only to be nearly thrown into a boarded window by Charlie.

"What are you playing at?" I shouted angrily, straightening up my broom to level with hers.

"What are _you?" _she snapped over her shoulder, "You ditched your friends, your school, your country, you _gender, _for Quidditch and didn't even bother to tell me!" Charlie glowered, not noticing her purple hair that whipped her face, "That isn't like you!"

"Maybe you don't know me as well as you thought you did!" I shouted back furiously.

"I know that you wouldn't leave us for a _boy _for Merlin's sake!"

"Can you leave James out of this?" I cried, "It's not his fault, it's mine remember?"

She let out a frustrated groan, "You could've _stayed _at Beauxbatons! You could've taken up a Quidditch summer league with me—!"

"I didn't want to stay at Beauxbatons!" I admitted in desperation. The flagpole was coming into sight and I could vaguely make the outline of the British colours. "I _asked _to leave the school!"

There was a stunned silence until: "_What?" _was her startled reply from a few feet ahead.

"For heaven's sake, Charlotte, my parents haven't even been dead for a whole year yet!" I cried loudly, almost hysterically, "My sister hates me enough not to invite me to her engagement party over the summer and maybe I just wanted to be closer to my only living relative that doesn't hate me!"

Charlie said nothing but I could've sworn that her broom was slowing.

"Beauxbatons was the school I went to when I had parents…Hogwarts is the one I go to when I don't,"

There had been one afternoon before the summer holidays when I had walked around the entire school, stopping at paintings to remember a thought I had at the same location such as remembering to return a library book or a funny joke I had shared with friends.

Or remembered the last time I had walked down a certain corridor was when I had parents.

Orphan was such an ugly word.

I could see the fluttering flag in the near distance and forcefully pulled myself out of my dark thoughts in order to focus on the task at hand.

Charlie's broom shifted a fraction of an inch and I feared that she wasn't paying attention until she started to drift slightly.

She had left an opening for me purposely, I realised. It was a wide turn that would easily allow me to win. I didn't have time to spare a glance at her face but I could only imagine the signal she was sending me; a silent question of uncertainty but with oddly true intentions at heart for my well being: _Do you _really _want this?_

My mind raced for a split second, a million thoughts running through my mind and I decided: I really did.

I made a drive for the opening, not glancing behind me but sent her a silent apology as I approached the still figures of Ana and Cheryl. I could hear the whirl of Charlie's broom just yards behind me.

We landed in silence; only hearing Anatolia and Cheryl approach us softly. As soon my feet touched the ground, the broom disappeared as did Charlie's and she stared evenly at me for a moment.

"_I suppose we'll be off now." _She said, dodging recent events entirely, _"We have a train to catch soon,"_

"_See you guys at Christmas, then?"_ I said in a hope-filled voice.

Ana gave me a sad look, disappointment mixed in there perhaps, Cheryl quirked the side of her mouth in a small apologetic way, and Charlie said nothing but inclined her head a fraction of an inch. She grabbed her roommates by their elbows and marched down the street, leaving me alone.

Tiredly, I walked up to Hogwarts, knowing that I was doomed to be caught by the caretaker for being out hours past curfew.

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

**Aww, Lily's having a bad day...a day that took three chapters to get through...Woah. Sorry about throwing that angst in there at the last moment (I have no idea how it got there, really).**

**I had originally planned on just Lily and James talking, but noooo I had to go complicate things by making them get stuck in **_**France.**_

**Just one of those slightly drabble-happy chapters that I like to write every now and then ^__^ Sorry it was a tad on the short side. Next chapter should be out soon! (We're still a bit behind schedule, actually…I wanted this one out about two weeks ago)**

**Next Chapter Includes:**

"Love Doctor Lily" strikes again!  
Slips of the tongue  
Slytherin vs. Gryffindor  
Christmas and Boxing Day  
Lily Evangelista

^__~


	12. Tis The Season

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By:** Liebling  
**Updated On: **6 February 2007  
**Chapter Twelve  
**"**Tis the Season"**

**:-:**

"Back from detention so soon?" said Remus.

"Pringle let me off early for good behaviour," I muttered, collapsing onto the sofa. Polishing trophies with no magic is no joke. Stupid Tom M. Riddle. What the hell could he have done for the school that would merit him such a sodding huge trophy? And then stupid Pringle wanted me to help start putting up holiday decorations with the prefects before McGonagall _subtly _suggested that I had done enough for the evening.

"You never did tell us why you broke curfew," he added.

And I wasn't planning to.

"Oy, is that Evans down there?" a voice called down form the boy's dormitories.

Saved by Sirius, I thought relieved.

"Yeah, it's me. And I can't be bothered to move so if you need you, you're gonna have to drag me up the stairs," I answered loudly only to be hushed by the people of the common room. Why didn't they ever hush Sirius? Well, I suppose they've been trying for six years to no avail and had just given up…

He didn't even bother with the last five stairs and just made one giant leap and three large strides over to the couch. For a moment, I really thought he _would _drag me up the stairs until he sat down in front of me, "We need help with the, ah, _project,_" Sirius emphasised.

I blinked in confusion.

"The _map," _he said, deadpanning.

My eyes widened in recognition, "Oooh, okay. What's the problem?"

A parchment was thrust into my face. It was a vague outline of the common room and I could see little unlabelled black dots roaming around on its surface. Sirius' finger appeared over the top.

"This is just a rough copy, but the black dots are all the people in the common room right now. Remus did the charm thingermagigger—" insert much eye rolling, "—but we can't figure out how to get their names to show up."

I was a good thing they couldn't see my face because I fancy I turned a trifle pale. I had come across an easy charm for something like this, but they obviously couldn't know that.

"Sorry, can't help you there," I said.

Sirius huffed and the parchment was withdrawn, "What 'bout genders? Can you turn the dots pink or something if there's a girl there?"

If I was pale before I doubt there was any blood left in my face now…

"No," I answered a little too quickly.

Sirius rolled his eyes, "Useless," he told me, "Absolutely useless,"

Ho hum, pig's bum, tell it to somebody who cares.

Our next match would be against Slytherin, just one day before break and as much as I would like to say I was looking forward to it…

I so totally was not.

I remembered watching the Ravenclaw/Slytherin match with Severus and cringing as they tore the poor Ravenclaws apart…Not to mention Sirius had gone into overdrive two weeks before the actual match and held practice every other day. And for the love of god, if he snuck up on me in the corridor _one more time _to try and quiz me on the chaser tactics, I would—

"Evans!"

"_WHAT?"_ I snapped politely.

Sirius huffed, "Don't you snap at me, young man!" he said in a trill voice that made me roll my eyes. "You, James, and Victor are going to working at the other end of the pitch until the end of practice!"

Practice, technically speaking, was supposed to have ended thirty minutes ago.

Me, James and Victor were chucking around the quaffle for about five minutes before Victor says, "Hey, Li? Do you know a bird named Lily Evangelista?"

I nearly got hit in the face with the quaffle.

"N-no," I answered, throwing the ball to James, "Why?"

"Oh, you just kinda look like her is all," he said, catching James' pass and lobbing it back to me.

James squinted his eyes at me and I panicked.

"Oy!" I said, acting as if I were offended, "You calling me a woman?"

Victor shook his head vigorously, "Uh, no…" he said, waving his arms about a bit, "It's just the red hair—"

CURSE YOU, OBNOXIOUS RED HAIR!

"—and there are not that many red heads floating around and I was thinking that maybe you were relate—_OOOMPH_!"

I through the quaffle at his head.

And hit it, obviously.

To my defence, James was starting to get suspicious. His teammate crookedly descending to the ground, clutching his bloody nose would be a good distraction I thought! And I was right; James pulled his gaze away from me and caught the quaffle on the way down. He tossed it to me while he went to look after his friend.

"I _was not _calling you a _woman, _Evans," Victor called up to me from about ten feet below with a congested voice, _"_I was_ saying _that you_ resembled—OUCH!"_

I had dropped the quaffle.

Again, it hit its mark.

"WHY AREN'T MY CHASERS CHASERING?" Sirius shouted, coming over with the rest of the team from the other side of the pitch.

"Because Evans is trying to _kill me!" _Victor shouted, clutching his nose with both hands, "I think he broke my nose," he said in disbelief.

"Accident!" I defended myself, trying not to sound too pleased that all the attention had been directed away from me.

I landed with the rest of the team.

Maud took one look at the bloodied Victor, confused James, an all-too innocent looking me and mentally replayed Victor's claim before turning on Sirius.

"Do you see what your slaving driving tendencies have pushed Li's already demented mentality to?" Maud cried, ("I take offence to that!"), "You've driven him to a delusional level that led him to attack his fellow chaser right before the match!"

"We're tired!"

"We're hungry!"

"You're annoying!"

"Where's your holiday spirit?"

And on and on went the complaints until:

"ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT!" shouted Sirius furiously, "PRACTICE IS OFFICIALLY _OVER!_"

And there was much rejoicing all-around.

I of course, had to hang around the water table while everybody finished up in the lockers.

Sigh. The life I live. Pretending to be a man _for a sodding sport._

A sport that I will love for all eternity and a day, of course.

I waited patiently (not) until everyone had filed out of the locker room before I entered to get cleaned up.

When I exited, not twenty minutes later, much to my surprise, there was Severus Snape, waiting outside. I had been the last one out so I knew that there would be no one coming up from behind.

"Um…hi," I said awkwardly.

He didn't answer.

We stood there in silence.

I decided to count the blades of grass between my boots.

I got to about twenty-seven before Severus spoke up.

"Still crooning over the _great _James Potter?" he spat.

"I don't croon," I answered coldly.

_Note to Self:_ Look up the word _croon…_

He sneered and again there was silence.

I sighed tiredly, "What do you _want_, Snape? An apology? A thank you? I really don't know what you want to hear from me, okay?" And I really didn't, "I never asked you tell me why you hated the Marauders. I never went out of my way to bother you, especially since you hate all Gryffindors and yet you still talk to _me_ of all people. And _me _is just a little confused right now!"

He stared down at me, though it was less menacing than usual, "Perhaps that was because I thought—"

"Evans?"

My face was devoid of all colour as I whipped around.

"James!" I croaked.

He looked at me, then at Severus and than back at me, "What are you _doing?" _I reckon that it didn't look too good to be talking to the ex-lead chaser of Slytherin and enemy of the Marauders just days before the match...

I meant to say "We were just talking!" but it came out as, "We're just friends!"

Smooth, Lily, smoooooothe.

He gave me a nonplussed look that could've said so many things.

Bugger, arse, _putain, _dammit, shit, _merde, _bloody hell…I was screwed.

James muttered something furiously under his breath, raked a hand through his hair and turned around and began to furiously stomp back to the castle. For some reason it seemed worse than all the times he would give me a death-glare.

I went after him, "No, James, wait a second _please—"_

That slight glimmer that I had thought I saw in Severus' eyes was gone and he sneered dangerously after me, "You're just like every other girl at Hogwarts, Evans," he snarled, "Tripping over your own feet to be at Potter's beck and call,"

I froze, and so did James.

Again, there was an awkward silence until James opened his mouth.

"_Accio boot," _he said without turning around. The leather Quidditch supply flew out of the locker room and was caught deftly by James who didn't even need to see the boot in order to catch it.

And then, just like that, he walked away. Seconds after, so did Snape.

I was growing tired of all this walking back to the castle by myself nonsense.

* * *

When I crawled into the common room, I immediately spotted Joanna by the fireplace. To my amusement, some of the younger students had taken it upon themselves to hang muggle stockings. More importantly, I missed talking to Jo. She was really the only female friend I had at the school. But she, like the rest of the world, had a boyfriend and I did not. Thus, limiting our time.

"Hello, Jo," I liked rhyming things.

"Hey yourself," she smiled, motioning to the opened seat beside her, "You look a little off," It wasn't a question, just a plain fact.

"Can you be an Agony Aunt for, I dunno, five minutes?" I asked with pleading eyes.

She said nothing as quietly marked the page in her book and gave me her full attention, "I'm sure I can," said Jo.

I smiled, relieved.

"Okay. I have some friends and then I have another friend. My friends are very nice but so is the other one. He, I mean—_the other friend _just has some problems and is a bit crotchety. My first friends don't like my other friend and it's doubtful that I'll ever be able to change their minds. And then the _other friend _has been absolutely—"

"Talk to them,"

"They won't talk to me!" James would give me the cold shoulder until Sirius yelled at him saying that he was damaging the team and Snape had way too much self-pride to apologise or at least try to explain what was going on in his twisted little Slytherin-y head.

"Well they can't really be your friends if you don't talk through things," I suddenly regretted walking into this conversation, "Even those things you don't want to talk about,"

I stared at her, hoping that there was more to her magical solution.

"Take my relationship with Nigel for example," she continued, facing me more. Her green fringe was awfully distracting… "We value honesty," she went on in that sort of deep wispy voice, "He tells me about a swell in the nargle population in north Ireland, and I tell him it's ludicrous,"

I sighed in relief. It was a good thing to know that Joanna could still keep her level head while dating Nigel.

"I told him that they were quite obviously over-populating in Poland,"

Well it was a nice thought while it lasted.

But she still got me thinking. I could do what Jo suggested. Just…_tell him the truth. _Then everything would have to work out in the end, right?

Right. Because that's how stories are supposed to end.

And I would _really_ like it to be all sunshine and daisies from here on out…

"Thanks for Agony Aunt-ing me," I said.

Jo smiled as she picked up her book, "Quite alright," she said, "I like talking to those who listen. And besides," she added, "'Tis the season for happy spirits," and her face disappeared behind the well-worn pages.

Putting on a brave face, I walked up into the dormitory. At first, I didn't think that he was even in the room until I saw him in the far corner.

"James?" I asked hesitantly.

"What were you and Snape talking about after practice?" he demanded, blunt and to the point, from the dresser, not looking at me but resting his hands on the surface. His arms were straight so that his shoulders almost hid his head.

I fingered the collar to my shirt nervously and bit the inside of my cheek. Wasn't there a quote along the lines of _the truth shall set you free…_?

"You know what? Never mind," he said, "It's none of my business. As long as it wasn't about Quidditch, I don't care." And for what seemed like the millionth time, James Potter turned his back on me and walked away.

**(A/N: Ooooooh! So close! :gets mauled by angry reviewers: bnssharrnellem****...)**

* * *

There was snow.

And lots of it.

The students and teachers had awoken to over two feet of snow outside their sleeping quarters, and by breakfast everyone was itching to go outside. Herbology and Care of Magical Creatures had been cancelled and classes were either skipped or just plain ignored inside.

After my last lesson, I was frantically running to the tower to deposit my things and grab an extra jacket for a nice stroll along the lake or maybe even a chuck a snowball at unsuspecting first year if I found the need.

"Bauble," I told the portrait.

"Sorry, dear, the password changed last night," she said pityingly.

"What?"

"Mistletoe," said Agnes from behind.

"_WHAT?"_ I nearly jumped a foot in the air before I whirled around, backing into the portrait ("Oof!") and clutched my bag to my shoulder tightly. The last thing I wanted was to be stuck under the mistletoe with Agnes…

"Mistletoe," she said again simply, not motioning to where the alleged branch was, "It's the new password,"

Oh.

"Oh,"

The portrait smiled, "In you go, dears,"

She motioned me monotonously to go on in ahead of her and I did so. Quickly. I didn't see what became of Agnes after I had entered because I saw a large group of people clustering around the notice board and I, being my ever inquisitive self, just had to figure out why.

"_Due to the current weather conditions," _somebody near the front read out loud,_ "all outdoor clubs and sports have been postponed—"_

"NO QUIDDITCH?" many yelled, myself included.

"—_until after the holidays—"_

"THE _HOLIDAYS?"_ we roared in outrage.

There had been a notice on the board when we had finished our classes and it, indeed, said that the next Quidditch match, the eagerly anticipated Slytherin vs. Gryffindor, would be held off until after New Years.

Professor McGonagall must've wanted to be _far _away when the students learned of this when she thought about placing the flyer in the common room.

Sirius had to be physically restrained from going after our head of Gryffindor and personally escorted to the sofa by his keeper—I mean, _Remus._

"We're still going to have the party at James' place, right?" Joseph asked Victor.

A party? I thought, my heart sinking slightly. And I wasn't invited?

Little Jordan must've seen the look on my face, "All the Gryffindors are invited to James' house on Boxing Day, but it's only the Quidditch team that gets to crash there for the night," he clarified for me, "Not many kids under fourteen or fifteen like to go, so James lets me brings a friend or two,"

That was…oddly sweet, considering that this was James we were talking about. Then I remembered our little _rendezvous _last month when we were locked in the cellar of a sweet shop. He hadn't been too unbearable _then_.

"Maybe I can convince Charlie and the girls to come," I said thoughtfully.

Sirius whirled out of nowhere. Merlin, I think he has super-heightened hearing.

"You _know _Chi-chi and the other French Fries?" he asked incredulously.

I cringed; this had a lot of potential to become messy, "Yes…"

He gave me an analysing look as if he could peer into my thoughts and see if my claim was legit. He seemed satisfied, "…Wanna ask them if they would like to spend the night?"

I gave him a _look._

"Mind out of the gutter, Evans! Yeesh," he said, "And people say _I _think dirty. International floo traffic is a pain and it would be easier if they spent the night in one of the guest rooms," This was an odd amount of logic coming from Sirius.

I rolled my eyes, "I don't think that they'd want to—"

"C'mon, mate, what's a party without a couple of girls that don't speak English?"

I scowled.

"Evans," Sirius sighed in exasperation as if _I _were the one being silly and childish and swung an arm around my shoulders and put himself in such close proximity to me that, if it were five or so months ago, I would have blushed. "My lovely and darling Charlotte does not wish to correspond with me throughout the school year and I rarely get to see her during the summer hols. So pull some of that Christmas cheer out of your arse and bring them to the manor," the last bit threw me slightly…

"Fine," I conceded, "I'll _ask,"_

It wasn't like Charlie would say yes if what her and Sirius' previous encounter had been anything to judge by. And Anatolia and Cheryl wouldn't feel comfortable without someone else to bridge the French-English bridge because I would more than likely want to talk to someone else other then those two.

_Sure, sounds like fun. We'll meet up at your house around three and leave together. See you there._

_A bientot,_

_Charlie_

Crap.

This was just so sodding typical of Charlie; overturning the applecart even a thousand miles away…

* * *

The ride back to Platform 9 ¾ was uneventful. Most of my time was spent avoiding Jo and Nigel making goo-goo eyes at each other and talking Quidditch with the team while also trying to avoid James.

Easier said than done. For where there is Quidditch, there is most certainly James.

In the end, I settled for finding an empty compartment and waited an hour or so before my Walkman started working again and listened to The Beatles for most of the ride.

What a way to start off the holiday season…yawn.

I must've fallen asleep because the next thing I knew, I was being thrown onto the ground as the train came to an abrupt halt. I clumsily picked myself up and looked out the window to see the platform.

Parents were milling around, searching for their children's window, no doubt, but for some reason I found myself tearing my eyes away from the window a little too easily. I grabbed my trunk and hobbled down the corridor with the rest of the train's occupants, eager to get off.

I hadn't spotted Jo, Nigel, the Marauders or anyone from the Quidditch team, much to my dismay, and I felt bad for not being able to say good-bye. I ran through Platform 9 ¾ on my own and watched my fellow classmates be embraced by their families.

My dark and dreary mood didn't last long because Sirius, again, swung out of _nowhere_ and locked me under his arm.

"Aaarrgh, we've found ye, matey!"

Obviously.

Letting me loose, Sirius said, "This is the floo address," he handed me a scrap of paper, "Swing by around five or six-ish. And don't forget the French birds!"

_Prongs' Palace_

I had wanted to ask if James really did live in a palace like the paper suggested, but Sirius had flounced off.

Sodding typical.

"Li!" I heard somebody call.

_Somebody_ going by the name Uncle John who also happened to be waving enthusiastically near a close platform.

Suddenly, my grudge that I had been holding for almost four months dissipated and I was happy to be with my uncle—happy to _have _my uncle, strange Quidditch obsession flaws and all.

* * *

"So tell me all about school," said John.

Contrary to popular belief, sometimes it's rather hard to recall a single moment from the past four months of one's life.

My bag had been dropped off in my room and I hadn't bothered to unpack yet. John and I were seated in the kitchen a teakettle in front of us and each clutched our own mugs.

"It's coming along," I said, shrugging, running a hand through my _long_ hair again. Before he could open his mouth again, I added with my eyes rolling, "The Quidditch is wonderful and we're playing Slytherin after the holidays,"

His face broke out into a grin, "So tell me about the players! You've hardly written over the past couple of weeks,"

I felt a bit guilty…but cut me some slack! I was only busy being involved in a scandal! Instead of telling him this, I sighed lightly before opening the conversation more, "Well Remus Lupin is our manager and usually plots out our plays and tactics. Sirius Black is captain and beater. He's a bit off—mentally I mean—but nice all the same. Joseph Daniels is the other beater, a nice bloke but he doesn't usually talk much. Maud Brooks is our keeper—the best one the school's ever seen, Sirius reckons, and has got nice a sense of humour, too. Then there's Jordan McClain. He's our seeker and the youngest team member being in his third year. Sweet as pie. Victor Bishop is a bit of an airhead but is a good right-wing chaser and usually mediates between me and James whenever we argue," I rolled my eyes.

"James?" John asked inquisitively.

I paused to count how many people I had listed off and mentally slapped myself, "Oh, yeah. James. Lead-chaser." Enough said.

"Hmm," said John looking unconvinced over his mug.

I rolled my eyes.

"How do the other teams look?"

My immediate thoughts were of the Slytherin team slaughtering the Ravenclaws and winced.

"They're…good," I finished.

John looked like he wanted me to elaborate, but I quickly finished my tea and placed my mug in the sink.

"I got an interesting letter from your friend in France a couple weeks ago," he said conversationally before taking another sip of his tea.

I cringed.

"Charlie?"

"Yup,"

"Ah,"

"I almost wish she never learned how to speak English."

"Sorry," I bit my lip, "She and the girls surprised me up a the school—"

John held up his hand and used his other to set down his tea, "You don't need to apologise, Lily," he said, "I should have asked for your permission to send you to the school under those pretences," here he cringed, "I've been thinking things over a lot for the past couple of weeks and if you want…" I could see where this was going, "I can fix things for you,"

Temptation. And lots of it.

"How?"

"Well I've got a friend or two over at the _Daily Prophet_ and another at the Ministry and they both happen to know of a new school being put together in hopes of opening next fall. They say that they have enough kids already enrolled that they could have up to _ten_ Quidditch teams." This amazed me. Hogwarts had almost a thousand students and it only had four. "And if they don't have co-ed teams, then they can at least have gender segregated teams. But you'd definitely be on a team." He grinned.

I couldn't help but smile a little excitedly also. "Where's it being built?"

"Switzerland."

"_What?_"

"It's going to be an international school," explained John hurriedly, "You would have wizards from Germany, France, Belgium, England and _all over the world_ at your school and in your classes! And Quidditch matches every two weeks!"

I loved the thought and I was almost certain that I would fall in love with the school the moment I saw it. But Switzerland...I wasn't too keen on the idea of transferring to a foreign school again. There were too many things to consider; classmates and teachers might get curious and double check John's shady paperwork, starting over so soon, getting a new Quidditch team—

And James.

His image came out of absolutely nowhere.

"Thanks, John," I said at last, smiling quietly, "But I'm happy at Hogwarts."

His grin fell a little, and I could see some guilt entering his gaze. "Are you sure, Lily?"

I nodded, making a move to get up from the table and put my mug in the sink.

"Absolutely. I'm going to get some sleep. I'll see to you in the morning." I kissed him on the cheek.

"G'night, love," he said.

* * *

The next morning was Christmas Eve and it was spent rather quietly and I couldn't help but be surprised. John and I did normal things like eating foods that we would regret two stones later, built an army of snowmen, and just loll about the house.

At five o'clock our fireplace was graced with the presences of Ana, Cheryl and my purple-haired Charlie.

She seemed to be mentally burning holes in Johns' head who skilfully paid no notice as he walked a little more quicker than necessary to get the tea.

We sat in my room and exchanged gifts. The girls had chipped in to get me a white gold necklace that I probably would not be able to wear for another six months…I had given Ana a beauty set, Cheryl a book on charms, and Charlie a Zonko's goody-bag.

I was broke! I didn't have access to my parent's money until I turned eighteen! I had to make do! Thankfully the girls understood that. The whole time we sat in my room, they were drilling me for information on the past four months.

"_But when we came up to the school and you left us at the café, where'd you run off to with James for five hours?"_ Cheryl asked.

"_We got stuck in France_," I told them, eyes firmly shut.

"_What…?_"

"_We had run out of chocolate!" _I defended, _"And it was James' first time with side-apparation!"_

"_You apparated to France just to get chocolate?"_

They obviously did not understand.

"_Did you snog him?"_

"_Non,"_

Silence.

"_Did you kiss him?"_

"_Non,"_

More silence.

"…_Did you hug him?"_

I cringed, _"Non,"_

Charlie sighed gustily, _"Did you do anything more than breathe the same air?"_

"_Non,"_

Several sighs were emitted and I pursed my lips.

"_It was the first time I had talked to him with him thinking I was a girl!" _I said defensively.

They rolled their eyes, _"Whatever," _they muttered and watch me silently fume.

Charlie checked her watch and cringed, "_I gotta get going. My folks want me to go out carolling with them tonight," _

We laughed at her expense even when she complained that a bright red bonnet would clash with her purple hair.

"_I need to be off as well," _said Ana.

"_Me too, I'm afraid,"_ added Cheryl.

I walked them to the fireplace and we said our _au revoir's_. Cheryl and Ana left consecutively and Charlie pulled me into a fierce bear hug.

"We'll see you Tuesday," she said before disappearing into the green flames just as Ana and Cheryl had.

* * *

The next morning, John and I swapped gifts and I couldn't help but be surprised by a new broom.

A _Cleansweep Seven_.

Wow.

We did normal things like attempt to play Quidditch in the house (it didn't work out to well), singing at such obnoxious levels that Chudley would hoot angrily from the other room, ate gingerbread and that sort of thing.

In the evening when the festivities had come and gone, John took me to my parents' graves to lay down some bright poinsettias and gave me half an hour to sit by myself and talk to the graves even though I knew I'd get no response.

But it made me feel better than I had in a long time, even if it made me cry the moment I got home.

John didn't ask questions, but left me some tea on my nightstand.

Bless him.

I had fully recovered by the next morning and true to their word, Charlie, Cheryl and Ana all appeared in my fireplace at three o'clock sharp. We had some quick teatime (tea makes the world go round) and by five o'clock, we had prepared the fireplace for flooing.

"_Prongs' Palace?"_ Cheryl read off the paper, _"Does he actually live in a real palace?"_

I shrugged, "_I dunno. Maybe."_

The girls exchanged interesting looks.

"_What kind of circle are you running around in, Lily?"_ Anatolia asked.

I rolled my eyes, "_Quidditch," _The answer to everything nowadays. I threw in a pinch of floo powder, walked into the green flames and voiced my destination loud and clear.

I tried furtively to shake out the ash and cinders from my hair as I slowly stood. I opened my eyes to find Sirius leaning casually against the hearth next to Remus with a clipboard at hand. But I didn't pay them any attention; I stood in silent awe.

"Evans—check," he said happily.

"Was the clipboard really necessary, Sirius?" Remus asked.

Charlie came out after me, then Ana, and finally Cheryl, who were all equally stunned.

"Three French birds—check," Sirius said even more happily and then went on to hum something that sounded suspiciously like "two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree".

"This place is…" I trailed off, looking for the right word as my eyes followed the parallel marble staircases, the candelabra on the ceiling, and even replicas of famous ancient Greek statues.

"Bigger than the sodding _Louvre_," Charlie finished for me on my left.

Sirius looked up and counted heads, "Oy, where's that red-headed one? Lily whatserface?"

I scowled, "She couldn't make it," I lied through my teeth.

"Shame," he said, shrugging it off.

"And I think you meant Lily Evangelista," James cut in from behind and I couldn't help but notice that his eyes skirted over everyone as if in search for said girl and fought the urge to grin goofily.

"_This is James Potter," _I introduced.

"_Thank you for having us," _said Cheryl to him very politely, _"I'm Cheryl,"_

"_Anatolia,_" she jumped into the introductions.

"And Charlotte," James finished, smiling lightly, "_From the café,"_

"_Charlie!_" she corrected quickly.

"_Li invited us, I hope you don't mind,"_ said Cheryl.

James' eyebrows all but disappeared into his hairline and he turned to me, "You know them?_"_

"Ye-_hus,_" said Sirius as though it were obvious, "Li here went to Beauxbartons,"

"Beauxbartons?"

"A partnered school to Beauxbatons for boys," Remus clarified.

Ana, Cheryl and Charlie looked at me weirdly.

"I've never heard of it," frowned James.

"Oy, do you have a place where we can put our bags?" Charlie intervened and I sent her a grateful look that she brushed off as nothing.

"Oh yeah. You guys can go claim a room," he James, pointing out of the room, "The guest wing is up two flights and to the right. Party starts at seven sharp in the main recreational room,"

* * *

Too bad I never got to really attend. Firstly, I got _lost _in one of the bajillion hallways and had to have a house elf show me to the party room.

"Oy! Is that your escort, Evans?"

Har har, see my sides split, Sirius.

And secondly: Anatolia got into the punch.

The _spiked _punch.

Apparently she had lost Charlie and Cheryl and stood panicking by the snack table in hopes that somebody would rescue her.

Thank god that it was Joseph who had taken it upon himself to keep an eye on her. I had to give the bloke some credit—he stood there like a rock even with a foreign intoxicated French girl who didn't speak English practically in his lap. Maybe he'd been stunned or petrified? It was rather amusing site to behold, actually. A large and blurry-looking beater intimidated by small and slender Ana.

"Liiileee," she slurred, waving a glass in my direction. I could only hope that onlookers would suspect that she was saying "Li, Li" and not "Lily". Better cross all the fingers…

"_Ana, how long have you been here?"_ I asked, pulling her out of Joseph's lap.

"You got this one, Li?" he asked uncertainly, standing.

"She's an old friend," I assured him.

"_Hmm…'sais pas,"_ Ana slurred an _I dunno _and I looked around at the half-empty punch bowl and cringed. I would have to kill Cheryl and Charlie later. I looked around for the two with a drunken Anatolia hanging off my shoulder and bit my lip. The party was still in full swing and I didn't have a chance of finding them with the dim lighting and loud music.

"_Hey…Lily?" _she said quietly into my shoulder.

I sighed, "_Oui?"_

"_I don't…I don't feel so…well,"_

She looked almost green and I paled.

"Hey, uh—you!" I grabbed a random Gryffindor passing by, "Where's the toilet?"

He took his sweet ass time thinking about with many "hmms", "errs", and "uhhs". I tapped my foot impatiently but stopped when Ana complained that it was only making her feel sicker, "Mm…that way," he pointed down a hall, "On the left, I believe,"

"Thanks," and then half-dragged, half-carried Ana through the throng of people, out of the room and down the hall. Oddly enough, the bottom level of Potter home has signs and finding the lavatory proved slightly easier than I thought it'd be. Did he live in a bloody hotel or something?

Much to my dismay, the door was locked, signalling it to be occupied.

I banged my fist on door in frustration.

"_L-Lily…"_ she groaned.

The volcano was about to blow.

I started kicking the door wildly, "DAMN IT! I DON'T CARE WHO THE HELL IS IN THERE BUT YOU'D BETTER_—OPEN—THE—BLOODY—DOOR—NOW!" _Each world accompanied by a furious kick.

I distantly heard a flush, but I was still kicking the door with all my might and Anatolia had braced herself against the wall.

"Would you sto—_OOOOOOOOOWWW!_" For a moment I thought I had just kicked a werewolf in the groin, but I was wrong.

I had kicked a James Potter in the groin.

Standing there, rooted on the spot, completely horrified, I was lucky that Anatolia had taken it upon herself to run into the bathroom on her own to empty her bowels in the toilet.

My face was heating up like a fireplace as James went down onto his knees, curling over right in front me. Just past him, Ana's stomach hadn't quite finished yet.

Maybe he didn't see me and I could just—

"_E-Evans," _he gasped out, clawing at my leg, "You—_you—!"_

"Accident!" I defended myself, pulling my leg free and running to Anatolia's side. I yanked a hair toggle free from her wrist and pulled her back into a somewhat sloppily done ponytail.

Her face was red, her eyes had completely glossed over and she was clutching her stomach tightly on her knees over the toilet.

James was equally red, breathing shallow, and clutching his…um…yeah.

I'm too naïve for this, really.

In the end, I had up ditching James in favour of fleeing to Ana's side. Truthfully, I had never dealt with someone this drunk. Sure, Charlie would get a little tipsy every now and then, but I didn't really have the stomach to watch someone vomit…the thought made my insides churn as I tried murmuring comforting words in French to Anatolia.

"_Evans," _James said again from the doorway, catching his breath after almost a minute "_What the hell—?"_

"Again: _accident_," I said, not sounding very apologetic or even looking at him for that matter. Ana was clutching the toilet like it would solve all her problems, and I was trying to look anywhere _but _the toilet…

James was stumbling to his feet but needed to latch onto the wall, "_Y-you—!_"

"Look, I'm _sorry _I kicked you, Potter," never mind where, I mentally added, "but right now _Ana _is number one on my priority list!" I snapped.

"_Stop…shouting…please," _Anatolia groaned from the ground.

Almost as if he just noticed her, James looked down at Ana, "What happened?" he asked, suddenly concerned. He was still hunched over slightly and his face rather flushed.

My eyes darkened as I returned to her side, "Somebody put something in the punch,"

He sighed deeply and his breathing was almost normal for the first time in almost five minutes as he uttered out something that suspiciously sounded like a hazard, "Padfoot". James clapped his hands and a house elf appeared, bowed and then said, "My I help you, Master Potter?"

"Could you bring us some water and a pepper-up potion from the kitchens?" he asked politely.

"Of course, Master Potter. Anything else?"

James thought for a moment before grimacing, "Get rid of the punch in the main recreational room and put out some bottled butterbeer,"

The house elf bowed again before disappearing.

"You've done this before?" I asked him, rubbing Ana's back.

James sighed, "Since I was fifteen and Sirius snuck a firewhiskey from home into the dorms," he said, "Remus is usually the morning-after person to go to since he's never really been one for drinking,"

I wasn't surprised if his bookish personality was anything to judge by.

The house elf reappeared a minute later with a glass, a jug of water, and a finely brewed potion at hand and disappeared with a _crack_.

And that's how I spent my first Potter Christmas Party…with James Potter, in the loo, pretending to be a man, and a best friend vomiting in front of us.

There are going to be some stories that I just don't tell my children.

* * *

Cheryl, who had been in deep conversation with Remus at the time, I learned, helped me pack Anatolia's bag and prepared the fireplace for a quick floo after the bulk of the party guests had left.

"_I'll stay with her for the night and look after her," _she said with a small smile, "_I can probably think of something to tell her mother,"_

"_Are you sure you don't want to floo back after you drop her off?" _I asked, even thought it wasn't really my place to offer.

Cheryl shook her head, _"Don't worry about it. I feel bad for not being there. You two have enough fun for the both of us," _she smiled again before taking Ana's hand and disappearing into the green flames.

I felt guilty for not going with them.

"Just us two then?" said Charlie.

I rolled my eyes, still slightly miffed that she had left Ana on her own. Honestly, those girls were lost without me. "Plus the Quidditch team," I reminded her but to no avail.

"Tonight's Girls' Night, then," she said, an arm slung over my shoulder.

"…We had Girls' Night on Christmas Eve," I pointed out suspiciously.

"And we can have another," she answered defensively; yanking me into one of the Potter's many guest rooms that I assumed to be hers. Oh yes, I thought wryly, this didn't look scandalous _at all…_

Ten minutes and several charms later, I was once again Lily. Charlie was enjoying herself, braiding my hair into neat pleats as I sat on the top of the couch, (really, who needs a _couch _in the _bedroom?)_ and she stood behind me with a strict-looking comb and several hair toggles.

We talked about non-important things, completely and successfully dodged the topic of James and almost all boys considered. Again: _almost._

Charlie evidently had stored up a rather nice rant session that took up at least half an hour…

"—_and so Sirius, the great oaf, just _waltzes _right into—"_

There was a polite knock on the door cutting Charlie off, (thank God) and she shouted, "_Come in,_" over her shoulder and someone entered.

"_Salut, tout le monde, est-ce que vous avez besoin__—_Lily?" said a surprised voice.

"James!" I squeaked, toppling over the couch.

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

**My gift to you is the suffering that comes with a cliffhanger.**

**Charlie can be awfully vindictive when she wants to be...So let this be a lesson to all of those that want to go cross-dressing in a foreign school, be sure to tell your best friend ahead of time...**

**And I absolutely **_**hate **_**fanfics that have Lily spend the night at James' house for Christmas. That just seems so unlikely! Why wouldn't she want to spend time with her own family? So yes, it is **_**Boxing Day, **_**not Christmas Day for goodness sake.**

**Speaking of which…**

**HAPPY **(embarrassing and cringe-worthy late)** CHRISTMAS AND MERRY NEW YEAR, ALL!**

**AND HANUKAH!**

**OH—AND KWANZA, TOO!**


	13. Merry Boxing Day

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On:** 30 May 2007  
**Chapter Thirteen  
**"**Merry Boxing Day"**

**:-:**

_Charlie _was my immediate thought as I landed on the floor behind the couch. She had appeared to be just a little _too _calm and a little _less _surprised when James had entered the room and not the usual house elf that swung by every thirty minutes.

I had landed on my back and stared, stunned, at the well-crafted ceiling and could hear the shuffling of feet from Charlie, James, or both.

"Hi," I said, wishing my face matched the chipper tone.

Charlie was leaning over the back of the couch with her arms folded and looking _highly _amused as James leapt to my rescue.

"Were you here for the party?" he asked, the surprised expression never leaving his face (and the shocked/stunned/panicked expression never leaving mine) as he pulled me to my feet.

"No, no, I just...flooed in," I lied, sounding rather breathless, "And I can only stay the night," I added immediately.

"Oh," he sounded disappointed in this little fact, (YES, YES, DOUBLE YES!), "Did you want to see Li? He mentioned that you were friends,"

NO, NO, DOUBLE NO!

"Er—I already have. But he's feeling a bit sick so I don't think we should bother him,"

"Really?" James sounded surprised, "I was wondering why he wasn't with the rest of the team."

Because I had been _kidnapped by my vindictive purple-haired best friend._ But he didn't need to know that.

"Uh—yeah," I said, "I made sure that he was all tucked in and that the house elves would take care of him," fabrication and artistic license was coming into play now. On the down side, they were going to think that Li Evans was a complete wimp.

"That's good," he said in approval, "We've got a Quidditch game the first week back and we'll need him up to speed," And I'm resisting the urge to roll my eyes… "Did you want to meet the team while you're here? Charlie already has," he motioned to said purple-haired fiend. "You're welcome to come down to the recreational room,"

"Actually, she hasn't eaten yet, having just gotten here and all," Charlie chimed in, an innocent smile on her face, "The girl needs a good meal and some meat on her bones. Why don't you show her to the kitchen?" she suggested in a, well, _suggestive _way…

"Er—are you hungry?" he asked, looking a little flushed in the face.

Charlie, with the subtly of a sly snake, quietly slid our half-eaten tray of cookies under the couch.

"I'm absolutely famished," I told him with a serious face.

He grinned lopsidedly and held the door open. I walked out and he followed right behind.

"Bu-bye!" Charlie chirped as James shut the door.

We could hear her chuckling madly just behind it and we both stared at the doorknob with fascinating interest.

"So," I said.

"So," James answered.

Silence.

"Have you been sneaking into any countries without me lately?" A good conversational opener if I may say so myself.

A wide grin grew of relief, "No," he told me, "I'm afraid I only reserve the occasion when I'm with you,"

D'aww, shucks.

My smile stretched even wider, "Well I'm not doing anything else this evening," I told him, "You up for another little chocolate _rendez-vous_?" I asked slyly. I was half-joking, but I was also _oh so serious _at the same time.

James stopped walking. For a second, I thought I had upset him and I stopped almost immediately after. He seemed to be thinking.

"We'd have to leave the anti-apparation fields," he started off slowly, "Quickest way is down the stairs, through the kitchen and out the back door about twenty metres," He was in a full-blown grin and so was I.

Actually, I was almost dancing in excitement.

"Let's go!" I cried.

"I still don't even know you!"

"I'm a girl, I'm sixteen, and I'm asking you to engage in illegal actions in a foreign country that involves chocolate and a dark room…didn't we already go over this the _last time?_"

"You're strange,"

"I know!"

James just laughed, grabbed my hand and pulled me down the corridor. We turned a couple corners, jumped the half the stairs, scared a group of dusting house elves and tripped on the carpet.

Well, okay. The last bit was just me. But _anyway…_

I had never seen him so loose and free looking before at the school or with the "other me" and I felt a pang of sadness for him. I knew that Li Evans and James weren't the best of friends, but even when he was with his little fraternity group, he was still…I don't know. But it gave me the warm and fuzzy feelings when he smiled and laughed with me. The real me.

We were half way down the stairs in the main foyer when I couldn't help but stop running and stare.

"Lily?" James turned.

I had never loved my name so much just then. The way he said it…

"Hm?"

"You've stopped,"

"I have," I agreed.

He stared at me and tugged at our joined hands that I suddenly became aware of.

"Do you still want to go?"

"Yeah," I told him truthfully, "I'm just looking at your banisters," They were mahogany wood, smooth, and rather wide.

He turned his head to stare at them for himself before turning back to me with a knowing and sly smile, "You want to slide down, don't you?"

"God help me, I really do,"

He shook his head and pulled me back up the stairs, "Ladies first," he motioned.

Ha ha, I missed being a "lady"…

"Ready?" his breath tickled my ear and I tried _so hard _to ignore it.

I nodded determinedly, dropped my grip and James gave me the slightest downward push before he himself hopped on seconds later.

"AAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAAAA!"

My "ha ha"'s proceeded to echo in the entrance hall.

I should have been paying attention. I mean, I really should have. I was so caught up in the thrill of the swooshyness and the echoing of my "ha ha"'s I sort of just let my arms get thrown up, my eyes drift shut and enjoyed the ride

Moments later I landed, rather painfully might I add, on the floor. And then I sort of just decided to lie there with my pride broken.

"A-are you—ha ha—are you o-okay?" he asked me, hunching over on his knees, winded and laughing.

This is usually went _so _much better in the movies.

"Spectacular," I told him from my eagle-spread position on the floor, "Never better really. This is actually quite a comfortable carpet,"

"Glad you like it," he told me and then stayed silent for a couple seconds to catch his breath, "Again?"

"Again," I confirmed. (I had to retrieve _some_ of my dignity.)

And back up the stairs we went.

"We—we really should have the—the Quidditch team run up these steps," He said in a winded voice, "Merlin, they'd be fit,"

I grinned, slightly breathless, but rolled my eyes, "I take it y-you don't take them out of the country for a little chocolate _rendez-vous _very oftenthen?"

"Nope," he said, "Still just you,"

I put on a false serious face and waved my finger, "All that chocolate is bad for your health, young man!" I scolded, "I think you've put on a couple pounds since the last time I saw you," I poked his (rather hard) stomach for effect.

We had reached the top again as James took mock-offence, "You lie!"

I grinned serenely at him, not saying a word or breaking eye contact as I slid onto the banister, "Catch me if you can, four-eyes," and I slid down the banister.

Wow, sliding down banisters, pathetic insults…I felt like I was five years old again.

I heard James hop on right after me and as I landed first about seven seconds later, I barely moved of the way in time to avoid becoming sandwiched between the floor and up against James' broad chest.

…Damn it.

"Last time!" I said, sitting and starting to crawl back up.

James groaned, but he was smiling, "You're going to kill me, Lily…" he panted tiredly, using his arms to help drag himself back up as well.

"No can do, James," I informed him over my shoulder, "I'm afraid I wouldn't have a place to put the body," he snapped his head up and I couldn't help but laugh and pick up my stair-climbing speed.

"Funny!" he said, "Why don't you say that to my face, then?"

"Only if you can catch me!"

"First one to the top wins!"

With the extra incentive for competition, James easily passed me and won. He smirked, mock-bowed and sat his cute little bum (THAT I HAVE NOT BEEN STARING AT, THANK YOU) on the banister and practically glided to the bottom.

I soon followed just behind and raced after him, once again keeping my eyes open and bracing myself for the mildly rough landing as I rapidly approached James…but it never came.

He locked eyes with me and a spark of _something _went on behind his and as I was just about to touch my toes to the carpet, James swept me clear off the banister and right into his arms.

_Just_ like in the movies.

We continued to spin, laughing wildly as we twirled around the main foyer. Maybe he'd had one sip to many, or maybe we had twirled one to many, but either way he was swaggering slightly on the carpet.

"The kitchen, James!" I reminded him, my head spinning, "We need to get past the apparation fields!" I was sure I had _at least _five or six more hours as Lily Evangelista; Charlie had done the charms only fourty-five minutes or so ago…but I wanted as much time as possible with James. Maybe it was selfish of me, but it was an opportunity that I had been dying to have for over four months.

"Th-the kitchen," he said, breathless, "R-right,"

It was just a turn around the corner and down a small set of stairs. He was still holding me and I wasn't about to say anything, in fear of embarrassing him or something leading to him putting me back down (my legs were already sore from the rough landing and running up those stairs).

We turned into a brightly lit room with the sounds of dishes clanking and expensive washing soap in the air. However, there was already someone there, tittering away with one the house elves about the events of the party earlier that night. Her hair was jet black, her skin was pristine and she was dressed in what looked like a pair of sweatpants and a man's shirt. She was barefoot with one of her feet on the opposite where I could plainly see a toe ring.

James quickly put me down the very moment she started to turn towards the doorway.

"Oh, hey," said James casually, albeit, with a slightly odd tone. Anxiousness? Shock? Guilt? "You're still up, mum?"

I'M ALREADY MEETING HIS MUM?

"Hi, sweetheart," she said in her cool youthful mum-ish type of voice.

James cringed at the endearment and Mrs. Potter's gaze switched as she looked over at me.

"I'm afraid I've never met you before," she said, cool and composed.

James seemed to inhale and hold his breath as he spoke, "Mum, this is Lily Evangelista. A friend of mine from Beauxbatons,"

She held a certain look in her eyes as she sized me up like only a true mother ever could and I suddenly wanted to retreat back to safety upstairs and have Charlie braid my hair instead, "I had been wondering when you were going to bring home another girl for me to meet, James," her face broke out into a grin over her mug.

James flushed and faltered, "_Mum_—"

Something upstairs exploded, followed by the sound of rushing water and then the objectionable cries of the Quidditch team.

"PROOOONGSIE-PAAAANTS!" Sirius cajoled from up the stairs, "WE HAVE A—_OH MY GOD! SOMEBODY GET LITTLE JORDAN OUT OF THE FISH TANK!"_

Whatever James was going to say was suddenly put off, "I'll be right back," he muttered and quickly hobbled up the stairs but not before shooting his mother _a look_.

"So, Lily," said Mrs. Potter delightedly, drawing my gaze away from the stairs, "Tell me about yourself,"

Oh bugger.

"Um…I'm sixteen?" I tried, not quite sure what she wanted to hear and what I could divulge.

Mrs. Potter laughed, "Okay, okay. How did you meet my son?"

Oh where to begin…She obviously didn't beat around the bush where as I absolutely loved to dance around it.

"Erm, I had a weekend off with a couple of friends and we decided to go to Hogsmead when we met the Gryffindor Quidditch team," A half-truth…but still half a lie, I reminded myself guiltily.

"So you wouldn't happen to be that 'French bird', to quote Sirius, who convinced James to go to the coast of France to pick up some chocolate to help pull him out of that awful slump?"

Eheheh…

"…er, no?" nervous chuckling.

Thankfully, Mrs. Potter found this sincerely amusing and only laughed. However, after a moment or two the moment was sombre.

"You know I'm really very grateful for the wonderful friends James has made," she told me, "It was such a relief to know that he had people helping him through things after that disaster with Danielle back in France," I cringed as the name was brought up for the first time in months. After another moment of silence, Mrs. Potter decided to change the subject, "So do you like Quidditch?" she asked me.

I nodded enthusiastically, "Very much,"

She smiled at my answer, "So do I. It's a real crime that they don't allow girls to play on the house teams, isn't it?"

I made a grumpy-looking face that made Mrs. Potter chuckle.

"You know you look a lot like red-headed chaser on the team," she commented airily, "Li Evans, I believe his name is. Your red-hair is very striking,"

I stood rooted to the spot. It just goes to show how much easier it is to fool a man than it is a woman. I couldn't even recall ever meeting Mrs. Potter as Li Evans. Maybe she had been at the party and seen me? In the dim lighting she could have passed as a student with _startling _ease.

"I…"

"I'd assume that Li Evans is related to John Evans. The same John who edits Quidditch editor for that sports magazine," she said, giving me a knowing and familiar lop-sided grin, "I _personally_ know the extents he would go to for Quidditch. I wouldn't be too surprised if some of his tenacity for the sport seeped into his younger relatives."

And that's when I realised that technically _Lily _never arrived. I would have responded to Mrs. Potter if Sirius hadn't lumbered into the room, sopping wet and leaving a trail of water behind that the house elves were already cleaning up.

"Hey! Another French fry! Brilliant! Nice to see you again my Lily-bumpkin!" Good grief, he's spent too much time with Charlie already. But as he dragged me out of the room, I had come to the conclusion that Mrs. Potter was definitely a cool mum.

After a series of confusing corridors and halls and Sirius trying to chat me up, we had made it to the team. James was hastily directing the house-elves over a three-metre tall fish tank that looked considerable depleted and grumbling something about what his father would do if he found out.

Only he and Jordan were completely sober. I don't think the rest of the team would allow him to touch any liquid-like substance in the room. I was actually surprised to see Remus holding an _alcoholic _drink with the rest of the team though it only looked like he had sipped at it.

"Oy, where's Evans?" asked Joseph, swaggering slightly as we entered.

"Sick," I answered, "So no one bother him,"

The team wasn't sober enough to be genuinely worried about my alter ego…

"Hey…" slurred Victor from his sprawled position on a plush chair that looked like it had been stolen from the Gryffindor common room, "If I squint my eyes, _you _kind of look like Evans…"

DAMN IT.

I panicked, "Er, I—"

"EVANS OWES ME MONEY!" cried Maud and then proceeded to pass out on the couch. (I really had no idea what he was talking about.)

But Victor stumbled off the chair and swaggered over to me and clasped both hands over my head. He set an unsteady and unfocused gaze on me that made him look a little cross-eyed.

"Yeah, mate," he said, though not very loud, "I didn't really notice it back in the Three Broomsticks, but you've got the same freckles an' everything," …he really noticed my freckles? "But don't let Li know I was comparing him to a woman," he whispered on my shoulder, spitting slightly, "He might throw a quaffle at my head again…"

Suddenly, however, Victor was pulled off of me by a slightly annoyed and flustered-looking James.

"Ignore him, Lily," he said, "He's had one sip too many. Do you want to come with me to the basement to bring up some Butterbeer?" Please tell me this is code for: _hurry up, we need to sneak out of the country to go steal chocolate before anyone on the team finds out._

I beamed happily, "I'd love—"

Victor was rolling his eyes, "Oh, _I see,_" he said, pulling back his jumper out of James' grasp, "Didn't mean to make a move on your girl, Potter," his r's were slurring slightly.

I'd hardly call comparing me to a man as _making a move _exactly…

Wait.

Hold the phone.

His girl?

THE TEAM—(ER, WELL, VICTOR AT LEAST)—ACTUALLY SAW ME AS GIRLFRIEND MATERIAL FOR JAMES? THERE IS A GOD! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU, KIND, MERCIFUL—!

"Victor, She's not my—"

HORRIBLE, DESPICABLE, INSENSITIVE—!

"This bloody place is _huge!_" Charlie whined upon entering the room and successfully cutting off James' defence, "It took me absolute ages to find everyone!"

"Charlie, my darling!" chimed Sirius from the other side of the room with a bottle of suspicious substance at hand, "Come to have a round, eh?"

Charlie rolled her eyes, "No, you pillock—"

"That's 'yes' in Charlie-speak!" he exclaimed, pulling her under his arm and dragged her over to everybody else.

She sent me a look that clearly said _you owe me big time. _Yet for some reason I doubted that she would've have gone looking for everyone if she didn't intend on staying with them for the evening. For deciding not to bring up that subject, I'd say that we were just about even.

"Take good care of her, Sirius!" I called, sending him a wink that Charlie thankfully missed and left the room with James practically skipping.

"Where to?" I asked, boldly taking a hold of his left arm and putting it around my shoulders even though my heart was pounding painfully.

"The cellar," he replied, face burning crimson as he smiled at the floor.

"Then France?" I asked hopefully, looking up at him.

There was the sound of breaking glass for the second time that evening and I spared a glance to the ridiculously large fish tank where our second beater, Joseph, was drunkenly swimming laps near a large fish with many, many, many pointy teeth.

"I think we'll have to reschedule," James said apologetically before dropping his arm from my shoulders and running off quickly.

"Yeah…" I said even though he had already gone. I could whole-heartedly understand, but was rather disappointed and hoped it didn't show too much.

"Oi, Lily, you look like someone just kicked your sniffler; you okay?" Sirius had swaggered up to me with Charlie under his arm in the most un-romantic way possibly. I thought she was being forced to smell his pits or something.

"I'm fine," I said tightly, sending Charlie a telepathic message to show her that I clearly was not.

She sent one back that said she was not either and made a head notion to the armpit she was stuck under and that she clearly saw me insinuate something to Sirius.

I sent her one that said "so what?"

Charlie sent one that said, "get me out of here!"

I sent her one that said, "I'm busy being depressed about James denying my potential for being his girlfriend,"

She sent one that said, "Suck it up and_ deal_ because at the moment Lily Evangelista doesn't even _exist _and he's going to school with your alter-ego who he thinks is a man,"

I sent her one that said, "go fu—"

"Hulloooo? Anyone hooome?" Sirius waved his hand in the distance between us.

Charlie and I blinked and glared at each other before turning our noses in the air (or armpit in some cases, ha ha). "Okay…" he looked at us weirdly.

The evening only seemed to go downhill from there. God knew whatever they team had been drinking was unhealthy in that amount of quantity. Jordan's mother had somehow gotten wind of there being alcohol at the party that evening and flew out of the fireplace to drag her mortified (and completely sober) son home.

That left me, Charlie, and James finding individual toilets for Sirius, Joseph, Maud, Victor and—dear Merlin—even _Remus._ I personally could only believe that the boys put some really bad stuff in his drink without his knowledge.

James took Maud and Victor, I half-carried Remus, and Charlie dragged Sirius to the guest wing where most of the toilettes were and split up.

Remus actually kept me rather amused as he kept listing off a strange series of Latin books and historical figures and was only sick once. I vaguely wondered if he would remember anything in the morning.

I didn't need to support him too much when I led him into the room and removed his shoes and sweater vest so he would sleep comfortably.

He muttered something that sounded something along the lines of "Aaaalpha…beeeeeta…gaaaama…" **(A/N: To Cath! For Remus surly recites the Greek Alphabet when under stress!) **when I was covering him up and before I knew it, he was out like a light.

I was just rearranging his shoes when someone knocked very quietly on the door.

"Yes?" I whispered through the crack, afraid it might have been Mr. or Mrs. Potter and preferred that they didn't see me in a boy's room. Luckily, it was only James.

"Hey, how's everything?"

I exited the room silently and shut the door before answering, "It's good," I kept my voice down.

"I've taken care of Victor and Maud," he said.

"And I just did Remus," I added.

"So that leaves Charlie with Sirius,"

Who knew if we'd find them both alive in the morning?

"Will the team be all right?" I asked. I had never really dealt with hangovers before and still hadn't a clue as to how Anatolia was fairing back home.

James smiled reassuringly, "They'll be fine," he promised me, squeezing my shoulder, "It's just a good thing Evans was sick or else this would have been a lot harder,"

I had to remind myself that at the moment, _Evans _was not my last name and I suddenly remember how much I hated my predicament. The evening had been wasted because of a drunken Quidditch team and I doubted that there'd be another chance to be with James as Lily anywhere in the near future.

But most of all…I didn't like how fast my heart was beating.

God, it just wasn't fair! I had worked so hard for the past four months for a sport I loved, but even now it was hard to not just quit and be done with it! My parents hadn't even been dead for a year, my sister wouldn't speak to me so I lost the people I've known my whole life and I was meeting all of these _new _people at Hogwarts and the Quidditch team and James…

And James.

I really didn't know anything about him. He hardly talked to me as Li Evans so when he saw me as Lily Evangelista and laughed and smiled it just made me want to _be _Lily again and always. But there was nothing I could do other than…

Other than _telling him_.

"James, I'm…" I started determinedly, blinking back tears, "I'm—"

My stomach growled.

James laughed.

"Hungry?" he finished.

I sighed deeply, confidence evaporating, and fixed a smile, "Just a mite,"

"Sorry," he said, "I guess we didn't actually get to go what with Sirius exploding my father's fish tank and talking to my mum—" he cringed, "—I'm sorry for anything that she said, really," we slowly stood.

I shook my head furiously, "No! She was wonderful!" I told him honestly, "I'm so glad I met her!"

He looked doubtful, "She's just been a bit on edge about things ever since last summer,"

Danny.

"Oh," I said, my mood dropping considerably.

We stood in that annoying awkward silence until James suddenly smiled and nodded his head, "Well, since sneaking out of the country is no longer an option, we can still make do with the kitchens. Shall we go, fair lady?" he held out an arm.

I looped mine through it and matched his grin, "You are _too _kind, dear sir,"

We laughed all the way through the house, though I'm not quite sure at what exactly. Maybe that drunken Quidditch team upstairs, a purple-haired French bird battling her feelings for my captain, or the events that had occurred that evening or years before. We could not stop smiling.

But I stopped under the doorway into the kitchen and looked up in confusion, "Parsley?" I said, "Who in the world hangs _parsley _on top of their doors?"

James laughed lightly, but it made my heart do flip-floppy things.

"That's not _parsley; _it's mistletoe," he explained.

My eyes widened and my mouth formed a lovely 'o' shape. I had never really had to worry about mistletoe at my all-girl's academy at Beauxbatons.

As James' breath was hot against my cheek, I could vaguely remember Jo saying something about nargles.

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**D'aww!**

**Bugger, I wish this chapter were longer.**


	14. Tick Tock, Knock Knock

**"Girl Got Game"  
By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **7 October 2007  
**Chapter Fourteen  
**"**Tick Tock, Knock Knock"**

**:-:**

I had come to the conclusion that my life was one giant ironic cliché.

Let's review the past ten seconds, shall we?

My first kiss wasn't until I was _sixteen_ and under a sprig of _mistletoe _with the _lead-chaser _of my Quidditch team who happened to be a total _dish _and was genuinely keen on me after only having seen me _twice_. That can qualify for love at first-ish sight, right? It was clichéd. Amazing, but horribly cliché…in a good kind of "HOLY MERLIN, I'M MY OWN FAIRYTALE"-way.

The down side of all of this was that I had sort of been sharing a dorm with him for the past four months pretending to be a boy. Gaaaah. Minor technicalities.

But then again, I was sitting quite happily up on cloud nine at the moment and not fully aware of that little snag as all the little cupids and cherubim sang happy alleluias.

"Tradition," he had said quietly after the brief seconds our lips had met.

I nodded, "Yeah…good stuff,"

Then the awkward after-moment set in.

Er…

SHOO, AWKWARDNESS, SHOO! Arrggh…

Ummm…

GAH! _I wish he would stop staring at me like that!_

"SO! How 'bout those Chudley Cannons, eh?" I said suddenly, leaping away and slapping his shoulder in a man-ish way (just goes to show that it was hard to stop acting even when I stood as Lily); the action seemed to have startled him, "Maybe they'll have better luck this year, right?" I laughed loudly, "I'd hate to lose another fortune by betting on them again!"

…who the hell unhinged my mouth? I have a right to know the sorry bastard who just allowed my jaw flap around wildly and produce such god-awful _sound_.

James stood there, thoroughly confused. I couldn't blame the chap, really.

"Maybe I should start rooting for the Krakens, you know?" I said, "You gotta love the Scots!"

"Lily—" he stared at me, baffled, and slightly weirded out.

"Or the Gryffins! Yeah, they're a pretty good team, aren't they?" I said as I my appetite disappeared and I turned my back on the kitchen and started to walk quickly down a hallway.

"Lily," James said more seriously as he followed, "Are you—?"

"Hungry?" I finished quickly, "No, no, not anymore—I'm great!"

"But you _just said—_"

"No I didn't!" I denied, walking away quicker.

It was easy for James to follow me because of his stupid long legs, "Do you regret it?" he asked, "Is that it?"

"Regret what?" I asked innocently, intent on making my feet take me somewhere.

He whirled himself in front of me and grabbed my shoulders lightly as if only to stop me, "Did you not want to kiss me?"

"Hey," I said defensively, halting, "You kissed _me, _buster,"

"You kissed me back!" he tossed easily.

Er…had I really?

Deny! Deny! Deny!

"Nuh-uh!" I sidestepped him.

"Yes," he insisted, matching my movements, _"You did,"_

"Can't prove it!"

"Would you like me to show you again?" he asked me seriously.

"Y—no…"

Good job, Lily. Really. Won't make him think you like him _at all._

"_Lily—_" he started again.

"James," I matched.

"_Lily,"_

"_James,_"

"LILY,"

"JAMES,"

Ha, I bet he doesn't think I won't keep this up for hours.

…unfortunately, I realised with a heavy weight in my chest, I didn't have hours. I had a scarce amount of _minutes._

He opened his mouth, but I cut him off, "James," I tried to say again, but it came out a little empty and dry sounding. Probably due to the fact that all the salt-water in my system was trying to make my tear-ducts explode. I cleared my throat and tried again with a stronger voice, "James," I said hurriedly as I continued my rapid pace, "We can't…date...or anything," No, no, no, no! Take it back, Lily! _Take it back! _"it—it wouldn't work," He looked away and ruffled his hair as if merely aggravated that I was not cooperating. I wanted him to know that there was so many more factors to this already complex equation, "You still haven't gotten over Danielle," I told him, hating the words coming out of my own mouth.

James froze in his tracks and his silence only confirmed it.

A new thought came to me as we came to a split in the hallways: did he just see me as a distraction…?

"James…I'm sorry," I turned suddenly and walked down the corridor I knew to take me to the entrance.

Pssht, more like sprinted down the hall like there was a million galleons at the other end.

I heard a tall and ancient-looking grandfather clock along one of the hallways before I actually saw it. The clock tick-ed and tock-ed as I passed and I glanced it, cursing the fact that time was, one again, so totally _not _on my side.

Sodding karma saw that I was having too much fun kissing James and decided it should fix my happiness by having my charms and transfigured clothes rapidly start to fade away…

"Lily! Wait!"

My once form-fitting jeans suddenly felt loose around my hips and I regretted the fact that I had no belt.

I wanted to scream; it could not be denied that I wholeheartedly wanted him to pursue me. I, however, being all mature and whatnot, knew that it would be better if it ended this way...then things could go back to being normal.

If pretending to be a boy and so totally NOT having feelings for my very steamy-looking and very _male_ roommate had ever been normal.

My sleeves were suddenly not a part of a lovely green jumper, but part of a dark navy sweatshirt.

I think he eventually stopped around the fifth turn when he realised I was running for the main foyer with the fireplace I had been expelled from many hours ago. I skidded to a stop and stared at the stairs, relieved to see that he wasn't there. I needed to talk to Charlie as soon as I could and it would be best if James thought I had left.

I wanted nothing more than to go home and curl underneath the covers…but Charlie would be worried if I disappeared (and Merlin knows what she would say to the team without my supervising her) and the team would wonder where my alter ego had wandered off to.

Absently, I noticed that my hair was still down passed my shoulders and I wondered how much longer it would last, knowing that my charms were stronger than Charlie's transfiguration.

To my dismay, I saw that my attire was the same as it had been when I arrived. If it weren't for my hair, I look just like the Gryffindor chaser almost everyone thought I was.

I stayed there leaning against the wall for about ten minutes in Lily-self-recuperation mode before pulling myself together. I cast an illusion charm over myself and doubled-checked every corner before I turned until I found Charlie's guest room. As I opened the door, I realised that Charlie wasn't there, much to my surprise and chagrin. It was frustrating, too, because I was dying for some serious girl talk at the moment. And I would have liked to have it while still looking (more or less) like a girl.

Good gravy, I wanted to cast a sound-proof charm over the room and run around wild, screaming and jumping on, in, and over things just to be rid of all this emotional baggage that came with being a teenager. Everything had just seemed so much simpler when it first started.

Go to school, play Quidditch, graduate, go pro, the end.

But now everything was so much more complicated and I kept coming up short with _everything _and I was sick and tired of it just not being _fair _anymore.

Stupid uncle John and his short-sightedness…

I tried kicking the bed, but the only thing I got out of that was a throbbing big toe and no relief from my stress. If anything, the pain only made me think about everything _more._

My thoughts deserved their own hazard sign with the way they ran around amuck in my mind.

HE KISSED ME! HE KISSED ME! HE KISSED ME!

HE THINKS I'M A MAN! HE THINKS I'M A MAN!

HE _LUUURVES _ME! HE _LUUURVES _ME!

HE _LUUURVES _DANIELLE! HE _LUUURVES _DANIELLE!

WHY'D I RUN AWAY? WHY? WHY? _WHY?_

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGHHHHHH!

Et cetera, et cetera….I never truly have ever been coherent and nor do I have any aspirations to be.

But in the end, I did end up crying, much to my embarrassment. Perhaps it was a good thing that Charlie wasn't there to see me break down like that. I don't think it was anything in particular that set me off…just all the little things.

All the little things that kept adding up to James.

Quidditch. Danielle. School. French chocolate. Friends.

Even by the time my eyes were dry and I had collapsed unceremoniously on the bed, my mind refused to settle itself, questions running left and right across my mind.

Where was he now?

Was he angry with me?

Would his mother tell him everything?

Had I been obvious to anyone other than Snape back at school about who I was?

But as an hour or so went by, the most pressing question in my mind came to be:

_Where on earth was Charlie?_

It was with that final thought in my mind did I find asleep.

* * *

It wasn't until the early morning when I awoke was the door was opened noisily as if someone had just come barrelling through in desperation as if they were being pursued and slammed the door behind them and leant against it, gasping for breath.

But lo and behold, someone had.

"Charlie?" I said in unsure tone from underneath my quilt.

She appeared to notice me for the first time.

"Where were you last night?" I demanded to know, suddenly fully awake. Short red hair was imprinted on the side of my face from where I had slept on it funnily, "I was waited for ages for you to get back!"

She shrugged it off noncommittally and went about the room picking up some of her clothes to prepare for what looked like to be a sudden departure.

"_Charlie_," I snapped again, annoyed that she refused to acknowledge me, "Where have you been?" Merlin, have I ever sounded more like a mother?

Charlie waved a vague hand, "Around," was all she said, "Help me out a bit, would you?" she motioned to the clothes littered about the room.

Looking at her unsurely, I began to help her pack, folding everything neatly—something the boys back at the dorm always gave me weird looks for.

"So…you got drunk with the Quidditch team?" I concluded.

"I stayed sober, for the most part," she said honestly, "Don't trust my mouth too much when I'm pissed,"

"Thanks," I said appreciatively, "For not risking it…and for helping me and James with Sirius last night," Come to think of it, where _had _she dumped him all those hours ago?

Her movements seemed to slow down as if moving was suddenly a lot harder for her, "You know," Charlie started off slowly and hesitatingly, "Sirius didn't really drink that much last night,"

I gave her _a look, _"He was rat-arsed, Charlie,"

She pursed her lips but didn't stop packing, "Not very. He was…I hope…somewhat capable of registering his surroundings," she stayed uncharacteristically silent for a moment and I turned my head to look at her, suddenly cautious at this sudden turn in her personality.

"Did something happen?" I asked worriedly.

"Er…"

I dropped the clothes on the bed, studying her attentively, "Are you trying to tell me something?"

Charlie cast a look at the door, making sure that it was securely closed and sighed, "When I took him to the guest bathroom, he didn't need to be sick or anything so I covered him in a couple of towels in the tub so he could get some sleep,"

"Aww, you tucked him into bed," I cooed before laughing.

But Charlie didn't laugh and my smile dropped. She was suddenly very serious.

"Yes…but I stayed with him for the night,"

"That was very thoughtful," I said softly, patting her shoulder. Who thought that Charlie would have enough patience not to kill Sirius for a whole evening!

Charlie paused with pained emotion on her face and collected her thoughts for a moment, "Lily," she looked up at me in annoyed exasperation, "That's not…_quite _what I meant…"

It took me a second to wrap my mind around this, but when I did, my eyes widened and my mouth hit the floor.

"CHARLOTTE—!"

"SSHHH!" she jumped.

OH SWEET MERLIN! THE NIGHT I HAD MY FIRST KISS, CHARLOTTE WAS…!

Suddenly, my problems seemed to disappear.

"OH MY GOD!"

"SHH!"

"OH MY GOD"

"Stop shouting!"

"OH MY GOD"

"Lily!"

"OH MY GOD"

"Ugh!"

"OH MY GOD!"

"_LILY!"_

"OH MY GOD!"

"LILY! SHUT UP!"

"OH—MY—_GOD!_"

"_Lily Evans_," she snapped, "Whatever is running through your silly little brain at the moment is decidedly _not _what happened!"

"OH—MY—wait…what?"

So Charlie _didn't_…?

"Charlie…did you sleep with Sirius?" I asked her very seriously.

Her eyes flew up briefly before narrowing like sharp brown swords, "Did I—? With _SIRIUS?"_

Oooh, if looks could kill I would've dug out my own grave. My previous question merited me a resounding smack across the head from Charlie.

"OF COURSE NOT!" she screamed at me, her face beet-red from a variety of things, I was sure. (The colour also clashed with her hair).

I rubbed the back of my head where she had slapped it, "Oh,"

She sniffed, "We only snogged in the bathtub,"

"You took a BATH with him?" I cried, incredulously.

"Ugh, _No!" _she snapped, "I said that we only snogged, fully-clothed, _in _a bathtub before falling _asleep _in the bathtub!"

Snorting in a very unlady-like fashion, I muttered, "Snogging my Quidditch captain in a _bathtub_…honestly."

Charlie refused to look at me, but rather shot the wall a pained look; a cross between annoyance and insecurity so I didn't tease her more.

"I need you to talk to him and see if he remembers…anything," she said, locking her gaze onto mine. I could tell by her tone that I didn't really get a choice in the matter.

"M-m-me?" I stammered, "Charlie, you know me! I can't talk to boys!" I could always rely on my oldest and most favourite excuse.

"What the hell are you talking about?" she stared at me with scrunched brows, "You've been living with them for months now!"

Oh yeah. Damn_._ I can't use my old excused anymore, I realised. I.E. "Sorry, professor, but I didn't do my homework because my fallopian tubes were in knots and my uterus was tearing itself apart last night", "I'm sorry, headmaster, but all my skirts are in the wash and so I could only wear my micro-mini today", and my favourite, "Sorry, Charlie, I'm too shy to talk to boys,"

Bollocks.

"Please, Lily?" she pleaded.

Well, she _did say _please…

I sighed, "Fine, but I'm going to talk to him as _Li _because everyone is going to think he jumped off the face of the earth or something…"

She threw her arms around me in a bone crushing hug, "Thanks, Lily," she mumbled.

"Yeah, yeah…whatever,"

I deserve a gold medal for all that I do.

* * *

I was sneaking down the hallways.

Again.

Why?

Because after I told her what had transpired the night before while she was…er…with Sirius, Charlie insisted that we re-girlify myself so I could clear things over with James. Actually, she didn't really _insist _this; it was more like Charlie shouting, "Ohmigosh, Lily! _Look!_" and my responding, "Huh? What? Where?" while she charmed my hair and transfigured my clothes behind my back and then explaining in a wannabe-sage voice: "Now I command that you explain things to James. Within the next thirty minutes before everything wears off. MUWAHAHAHAHA!"

Alright, maybe she didn't phrase it _exactly_ like that or say the "muwahaha's"…but she might as well have!

"You've always worked better when under a time crunch, Lily," she told me with that horrible spark of mischief in her eyes, "Why should James be any different?"

"Because James is not a piece of homework that I've procrastinated on?" I cried.

I checked my pockets for my wand until Charlie waved it in front of my face with a smug smile.

What a lousy best friend, right?

For the first time ever in my whole SIXTEEN YEARS WORTH OF EXISTENCE, I was tired of being a woman.

So here I was (again) in this horrible Cinderella act in which the clock was ticking away and my Prince Charming who thought I was a man was also the one I was trying to avoid at all costs so there'd be no confrontation that involved any secrets being told.

I ducked around another corner and into the hallway that held my guest room. I had about ten minutes before The Bomb went off (I would've had more if I hadn't spent about ten more minutes if I hadn't stayed back to yell at Charlie) and I hadn't run across a single person!

Maybe I could explain everything to James after graduation? I thought.

And them we could live happily with a cottage in the woods with two-dozen children amongst all the singing forest animals like the movies.

…if he still wasn't hung up over Danielle.

Bugger…I couldn't even hate the stupid tart properly! She just HAD to be so sodding _nice!_ God! Why on earth did James have to have such great taste in women? Weren't boys his age usually into the sex-on-legs type of girls? Jesus, why couldn't James just be the same?

I spotted my room, the second door on the right, and slunk in silently and shut the door behind me.

I grinned devilishly; I was really getting quite good at this whole sneaking concept! Really, they should make a sport out of this! But then again, I thought, for all I knew, I was the only one sleeping in this corridor.

Looking around the room, I could see that like Charlie's room, all of my things were simply everywhere. I dug around for a bit before I could find my bag and began to shove in whatever came into my hand hastily.

I leapt on the bed and leaned over the edge in order to collect those ruddy rolled up socks (that are often abandoned and left alone for years at a time before being rediscovered) when there came a knock.

I froze. That was…unusually polite, I thought. Usually people just barged right through the door!

The knock came again, "Oy, Evans," said a voice on the other side of the wood, "Are you in? The house elves said they couldn't find you last night. You feeling any better?"

James!

I panicked. Which led me to squealing and toppling off the far side of the bed as I heard the door open.

You'd think I would've learned how to _lock_ the damn door after all this time…

"Evans?"

I was buried under my fallen bag's supplies but I was able to glance at the bed next to me and attempted to shimmy my way underneath as I heard him walk to the other side of the room where I would become clearly visible.

"Li?" he said unsurely.

I froze, no longer trying to scoot under the bed. I was probably covered in too many clothes for him to be able to distinguish my more feminine outerwear…

"Yes, James?" I responded with equal hesitancy, nearly forgetting to deepen my voice.

"_What _are you doing?"

I swallowed, "Just—just picking up my things," I continued to lay there, afraid that if I moved he would see me.

About ten seconds went by.

"Hey, Evans?" he said slowly.

My eye twitched in exasperation and I answered in false patience, "Yes, James?"

"Should I ask why you have a pair of women's knickers on your chest?"

I let out an audible gasp.

MY KNICKERS!

They must've fallen out of the bag with I dropped it! I shot up without a second thought and snatched the offensive undergarments off my chest and immediately sat on them, horrified that James of all people had seen them.

"_Lily?_" he said incredulously, his shock not hidden.

…which, consequently, allowed a riveted James see my uncharmed face that was half covered by nearly a foot and a half of red hair.

I met his unwavering gaze, unsteadily and unblinkingly. I looked like a bloody dear caught in the headlights with a sock on my head, and James looked like...well I wasn't quite sure.

Maybe this didn't look as bad as it seemed…?

"That's why you were acting so funny earlier," he said quietly with a realising tone, "You're seeing _Evans_,"

Nope. It was worse. And wouldn't dating myself make me, I dunno, a narcissist?

Oh sod, I thought. He probably thought that since he was finding Lily's frilly knickers and Li Evans' bedroom that Lily and Li were in a…very serious relationship.

Inwardly, I wanted to die.

"No! James I—" I plucked off the sock on my head and approached him almost desperately, "I am _not _seeing Li…I swear we're just _really _close," How could he stare at my face and not see the blatant resemblance to his roommate? I mean, how much of a difference could shorter hair and a couple of daily charms over my face make? When I looked into a mirror, I could still see myself as Lily.

But then again, I had been staring at this face for about sixteen years now—

UGH! JUST SNOG ME, DAMN IT!

"James—"

"I'm sure you know your way to the exit," he said stonily and without meeting my gaze, already halfway out the room at an alarming pace. He fully intended on leaving me like this and _fast._ "As soon as you've finishing packing your…things," was it just me, or did his eyes seem to darken? "You're free to escort yourself out,"

That really, _really_ stung.

"James," I said with desperation and finality in my voice. Miraculously, he stopped and turned to look at me with such wide hazel eyes that all I could find inside myself to say for the second time was, "I'm _sorry,_"

Grimly satisfied, he left the room tight-lipped, not seeing me sink back onto the bed.

It wasn't fair! How could he like me so much after having met me, _Lily, _only twice? _I _had known him for months! How come _he _was the only one who could openly express his unhappiness? I was upset, too!

I fought the great urge to run after him.

Sighing, I knew that I would not be able to confront James as either Li or Lily for…well, for how long I wasn't quite sure. I felt the sudden absence of my hair and could tell that the charms had finally worn away after having served their purpose.

Wonderful timing, Charlie, really.

I was Li once again but I doubted it would be any easier.

* * *

Charlie was grinning smugly as I re-entered the room.

"Well?" she asked with controlled eagerness.

I had never before wanted to punch her as much as I did just then.

"Give me my wand," I said slowly.

Her smile dropped and she sighed, "Didn't go too well, then?" she asked, tossing it lazily in my direction.

Numbly, I snatched it out of the air and stared at her so coldly that even she looked a little startled. Buried not too deep below the surface inside me, I was tempted to turn my wand on her, something I had never felt before.

Charlie never ceased to amaze me with her multi-faceted personality. How she could go from being obnoxious, dying her hair strange colours, piercing Merlin only knew what, to a suddenly stricken and timid girl intimidated to the point of muteness after snogging a boy, and then back to this horrible manipulative person who lacked any form of empathy? It was making my head spin.

Determinedly, I forced the pity out of my mind for one of the few times in all the years I had known her I could recall. I wouldn't back down this time.

"You need to stop it," I told her, my tone hardly wavering.

"Stop what?" she asked, confused.

"Stop toying around with my life!" I exploded, "_It's not a game!"_

Charlie's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"I'm trying to _help _you, Lily!" she ground out lowly, "You've always been too afraid to put yourself out there and take chances!"

"Put myself out there like you did with Sirius last night?" I shot back.

Charlie didn't seem to appreciate that little reminder as her voice turned to ice, "I did you a _favour_—"

"_Favour?" _I guffawed, "What kind of _favour _was that, Charlie, hm? Now that James thinks I'm _sleeping_ with _his friend!"_

Charlie looked at me in aggravation before blinking and rubbing her tired eyes, "What the hell could you have possibly done now, you silly little girl?"

I exploded.

"STOP—_PATRONISING_—ME!"

Charlie stood and when she did, she towered over me, "I'm _not _patronising you, Lily!" she threw back, "I'm telling you that you _screwed up_—"

SCREWED UP?

"Why do you help yourself to _my life _when you can't even figure out your own?" I demanded to know, rocking to the tip of my feet so that I might be able to look her in the eye, "For Christ's sake, Charlotte, I didn't force _you_ to talk to Sirius on your own when you wandered back into your room wearing yesterday's clothes! I even said I'd talk to him _for _you! Because for once in your life _you _didn't know what to do! A-and all that stuff between me and James, that's between the two of us! It has nothing to do with you!" I yelled. "Just—just stay out of my life!" I suddenly felt relieved, "Stop trying to manipulate me! I'm not that shy twelve year old anymore, damn it! You _can't _keep trying to _control me!_"

We stared at each other resentfully for a long time.

Her lips were curling and eyes cutting into me darkly while I tried not to fidget under that stare. Her overnight bag, which was sitting on the finely carved trunk at the end of the bed, was silently swept over her shoulder as she finally looked away. She turned her back on me and without another word she left the room with a swish of purple hair.

She didn't even slam the door.

I kicked the bed and for the second time in the span of twenty-four hours; my toe begrudged me for it.

That made two friends who hated me in the span of half an hour. Who's next? I thought dully.

I collapsed on top of the mattress for only a short matter of minutes had with every intention of just simply dying there until—

"Hey, Evans?" said a quiet voice from the corner of the room.

AAAAAAAAGHHH!

"_AAAAAAAAAGHHH!" _I leapt off the bed, surprised and stunned to only see James standing in the doorway, scratching his neck and staring weirdly at my startled scream.

"Er," I coughed, "I mean, yes, James?" I said unsurely.

He stepped forward and I resisted the urge to step backwards, "I passed Charlie in the corridor and she said this is where you were and maybe I should talk to you," Merlin, Charlie, just _give it up _already!

"Oh," I said, "Okay,"

Come on, Lily! Can't you be anymore articulate?

"Can I ask you something?"

Uh…

"Uh…"

Form _words, _mouth! WORDS! I commanded silently.

He sighed slightly and shoved his hands deep into his pockets, "It's nothing personal…well, it kind of is but I…"

"Do you want me to go get Sirius or someone?" I asked, motioning to the door, forgetting I had no idea where he was.

"No!" he answered rather quickly, "It's just about…"

He looked frustrated.

"A girl…?" I could only guess. I had told him that I was friends with "Lily" and "Lily" just kind of disappeared out of thing air after being accused of dating, ahem, _myself,_ and Charlie must've strongly hinted to James to come and see me, sooo…

James nodded.

"Lily?"

Another nod.

Life, you are too cruel.

"She mentioned that you were friends," he told me, "But I didn't know if—well, it's none of my business, but I was just curious if you two were…"

"Dating?"

He swallowed, "Yeah,"

"No," I said quickly and firmly.

James nodded, still not meeting my gaze, "And…she also said that you two talked a lot and I was just wondering if you ever really talked about…well,"

"You?" I tried weakly.

"Yeah,"

_Mayday! Mayday!_ Get yourself out of this, Lily!

I cleared my throat nervously, "We-ell," is stretched out the word as much as I could, "She…er…she said that she…_likes…_you,"

He didn't move his gaze from the floor, but the self-doubt was evident as I saw his grip tighten on the dresser he leaned on.

"But, um," I continued, "She doesn't think she has time for a relationship at the moment,"

Hey, I thought, that was actually a pretty darn good excuse.

"How long have you known her?"

"A while," I answered vaguely.

"Has she always been so, so…" he searched for a word.

Amazing? Stunning? Wonderful? Jaw-droppingly gorgeous? Mind-blowingly adorable?

"Insane?"

I coughed politely, "I-insane?"

"Well, yeah,"

"How so?" I asked in a strained voice.

He sighed, rubbing his forehead, "You can't tell Sirius or anybody that I was talking about this sort of thing, all right?" James looked at me intensely, "This is strictly a man-to-man conversation, okay?"

Good grief…

I nodded, biting the inside of my cheek.

"Have you…have you ever kissed a girl who, at the time, was, you know, enjoying it and all—" Don't blush, Lily, for god's sake _don't blush! _"—but then turns around and starts _raving _about the _Chudley Cannons?_" Umm… "And _then," _he went on, "When you're trying to have a serious conversation, she keeps trying to run away! But not before, of course, she _accuses _me of still being in love with another girl who I am _trying _to forget about!" he slammed a fist against the dresser, "You know?"

"Um…can't say I do, sorry," I wished I could've put more feeling into my apology.

James studied the floor, probably frustrated that I couldn't help or relate to him at all.

I swallowed and made an attempt to keep the conversation, "And…and how long have you known Lily for exactly?"

"We," he hesitated suddenly before concluding the sentence with a sigh, "We'd met once before through a mutual friend a couple weeks ago,"

"Right," I said, my shoulders suddenly not as tense, "And you haven't talked to her since then until this evening?"

He shook his head no.

"So maybe k-kissing Lily, especially when you had confided in her about Danny, was moving to fast for her when she may or may not still consider you a stranger," I lied through my teeth.

"You reckon so?"

NO.

"Definitely,"

Uugh…

"Is that what she told you?" he asked eagerly, "So if we—"

"Woah, hold up there, buster," I said quickly, "She said that it wasn't a good time for her to be in a relationship, _remember?_"

He answered with a distracted, "Right, right," but I wondered if he really heard me as he asked, "So you'll talk to her for me?" he asked, "Maybe convince her to come up for Hogsmead for a drink sometime?"

"Eh, sure," I shrugged, making sure he didn't catch my grimace, "Come on," I said trying to change the subject as fast as I could, forcing myself to smile as I turned back to him, "Let's go round up the drunks,"

* * *

It was easier said than done. James and me divided the manor in half, the east end and the west end, to search for our missing comrades. Luckily, Mr. and Mrs. Potter had disappeared some hours before to go to work—according to a wandering house elf.

I had tried to recruit a couple of them into searching for the Quidditch team, but they looked at me weirdly as they tidied up the halls and disappeared with an obnoxious _crack!_

I really should have asked Charlie where she had stuck Sirius because he was actually the hardest to find. James and I had already found the whole Quidditch team—except little Jordan who'd left the night before after nearly drowning in a giant fish tank—but Sirius, it appeared, seemed to have disappeared off the face of the earth.

Passing by James for a second time with a hopeless shrug, I turned onto my corridor for the third time and realised that I was still in my clothes from yesterday evening. After all the drama that my jeans, sweatshirt and trainers had endured, I decided that a change of clothes was in order.

I opened the door tiredly, only to find it already occupied.

"Er, hello there," I said to the group of bustling house elves. Good gravy, how many did the Potter's have?

They stopped their cleaning and looked at me with those wide unblinking eyes before glancing at the one who was tidying around my bag. The little creature bowed so low in respect that his large nose nearly brushed the floor, "We is almost finished with your room, Master Evans, but we shall leave if you please,"

I've always had a soft spot for house elves.

"No, no," I said, "You can keep working, I'll just change in one of the bathrooms,"

The old house elf bowed again, "As you wish, Master Evans. Would you be liking some medication for your illness?"

Smiling ruefully as I remembered that _Li _was supposed to be sick in bed, I grabbed my bag, "No, I'll be fine. Thank you," I shut the door behind me as I left.

Turning one corner, I found the one bathroom near Charlie's previous room, the only one I knew to be unoccupied by sick Quidditch team mates heaving out their entrails. (Really, I think hanging around all these men has made me slightly crass). I felt a strange wave of guilt, knowing that I hadn't been with them that evening as things got out of hand.

Soundlessly shutting the door behind me, I turned and _locked _the door (oh the amount of progress I had made in this department) and tugged on it slightly to make sure. No one else would be barging in on me, I grinned triumphantly.

At the moment, I wanted nothing more than a nice long soak in the bath. With bubbles. Lots and lots of bubbles. And judging by how large and wide the room was, I could only guess that the bathtub behind the curtain would be just as equally expansive.

I stripped off my socks and trousers and replaced them with cleaner substitutes, but it was after I took off my shirt and began to unravel the strap around my chest did I began to have a _slight _dilemma.

Of gargantuan proportions.

In the mirror, I saw the shower curtain suddenly be whipped back single-handedly and I stood rooted facing our reflections.

"Hey, Ev—_AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHHHH!"_

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as I pivoted on the spot, grabbed and clutched my shirt from the night before to my nearly bare chest and fell backwards into the sink. He tried to back up in the tub but slipped and tumbled to the floor.

_Oh yeah_, I thought, my mind strangely calm as my heart dropped out of my chest and half of the bottles on the countertop hit the floor like liquid fireworks.

"SIRIUS!" I cried.

_Charlie had said that she snogged him in a bathtub._

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

**I apologise for the obscene amount of lateness of this chapter and hope to have the next instalment up in less than two weeks.**

I did a bit of rearranging with the fic and took out about two pages from this chapter and moved it to the next. **Chapter Fifteen **should, in theory, be far more interesting, and then the one after that starts the **rising climax.**

Also, all reviewers should thank _**DragonMist**_from for motivating me to get my butt into gear with getting this update out sooner! I'd love to see some of your fanart! :D


	15. Secret Keepers

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **29 February 2008  
**Chapter Fifteen  
**"**Secret Keepers"**

**:-:**

'_Maybe he didn't seen anything!'_ was my immediate delusional thought in an attempt to calm myself.

"You—you—!" he pointed a shaking hand at my boobs.

Well, there went _that_ glimmer of hope.

SWEET MOTHER OF MERLIN, HE HAD SEEN EVERYTHING!_ EVERYTHING!_ I mean, I knew I didn't have a lot of _everything _but I still had _enough _of everything to be noticed and know that my entire secret identity was out after all the trouble I went through making sure that _James _didn't find out BECAUSE IT WAS _SIRIUS _WHOO HAD AN ISSUE WITH KNOCKING LIKE PROPER YOUNG ENGLISH GENTLEMEN—! _MERLIN AND MORGANA, I HAD JUST FLASHED MY QUIDDITCH CAPTAIN!_

BREATH, GODDAMMIT, LILY! _BREATH!_

"Sirius! Sirius! It's me, Lily!" I said, trying to quiet him by pulling my shirt quickly over my head and then waving my arms about in front of his face.

Sirius was having difficulties deciding whether to gawk and point or claw himself out of the tub.

"OH—MY—GOD!"

"Sirius!"

"OH—MY—GOD!"

"Sirius!"

"OH—MY—GOD!"

Wow, déjà vu…

"SIRIUS!"

"OH—MY—_OUCH, GODDAMMIT! THAT HURT!"_

I had slapped him. If it's true that we learn from our past mistakes…well, I decided to cut to the chase. My hand stung quite a bit, too.

I gripped his shoulders tightly, "Sirius," I said, "It's _me. _Lily."

"LILY?" he said in a panicky voice.

"Yes! Lily Evangelista!"

"W-_what?"_

A little voice from somewhere in the distant recesses of my mind (my dear old voice of reason, perhaps?) reminded me that I had to be patient with boys—their skulls were thicker and harder to penetrate.

"Sirius!" I exasperated, shaking his shoulders violently in a definite non-patient way, "You need to _shut up _and _listen _or I swear to god I will hex off your balls and _make you eat them!"_

I think only when I started to pull out my wand from my back pocket did Sirius get the picture on just how, er, _serious _I was being.

He looked at me, he looked at the door, and he then made his decision.

"SIRIUS, GET BACK HERE!"

He tried to make a getaway by pushing me down, leaping over the tub and gunning it for the exit like I was about to attack him…(ahem).

As he tried to unlock the door in rapid speed, I jumped on his back all the while pushing off the door with my foot.

Sirius yelled and lurched but amazingly did not fall.

I blushed when I locked my legs around his waist and I grabbed hold of the shower curtain to help keep him from falling. Unfortunately, he tried to turn (quite possibly to throw me off), but I gripped the curtain with steel fists and we ended up pirouetting spectacularly with the shower's drapery wrapped around us like a deformed toga.

Before we crashed to the ground, that is.

Luckily, good ol' Sirius was there to break the fall.

"Oh my god—my _face!"_

Ah yes, good ol' Sirius, indeed.

"Oh, um, sorry," I said, pulling myself free of the shower curtain with more ease than Sirius who seemed determined to tear it apart while trying to get out. "Are…are you okay?" Oh on the outside I might have appeared calm, but on the inside I was screaming.

"OF COURSE I'M NOT OKAY!" he snapped.

"Right, standard question, sorry," I helped pull him free from the curtain.

"WHO THE BLOODY HELL _ARE _YOU?" he exploded, nearly tearing the material.

"_Li,_" I tried this time, "Li Evans!"

"LI EVANS DOES NOT HAVE BOOBS!"

I wish I was capable of a memory charm…or maybe I could play this off as a hallucination or something…? I sighed, knowing that there was no other way out of this. But of all the people for me to share my secret to…ugh, the universe chose SIRIUS?

"Yes…and no," I said vaguely.

"WHAT?"

"For goodness _sake_, Sirius," I sighed, "Could you at least stop shouting? Someone's going to hear you!"

"NO I CANNOT AND _WILL NOT _STOP SHOUTING UNTIL I UNDERSTAND WHY LI EVANS HAS BOOBS!"

I gritted my teeth. Could he be _any _more eloquent? Really now.

"BECAUSE LI EVANS IS A _GIRL!"_ I shouted at last.

Silence reverberated around us.

"What are you _talking—?"_ Sirius started.

"_Sirius,_" a said fiercely, "Stop—being—so—_dense!_ I _AM_ Li Evans, Li Evans _IS_ Lily Evangelista, and Lily Evangelista is _ME!"_

"Y-you're Ev—wait…WHAT?"

"_Sirius_," I said again with a limited amount of patience, "I'm Li Evans. You're _real _lead chaser even though James likes to _think_ that _he's _the lead chaser. But I'm also Lily…the girl you met in Hogsmead from Beauxbatons…remember?"

Sirius nodded slowly and then leant back a bit and regarded me carefully.

"So…you're, um, _which_—?"

"I'm a girl," I said huffily, glaring, "And my real name is _Lily _Evans,"

"And you are…_our_ Evans?" he said as though the words were being forced out of his mouth.

I cringed and nodded slowly as I let go of his shoulders, "Yeah…" I said quietly, "I am,"

"_Evans, Evans?"_

I nodded again, even slower.

"As in, our _roommate Evans?"_

"Do you know any other Evans around here?" I asked impatiently. He was getting a bit ridiculous…

He scrutinised me some more, "Evans _and _Evangelista?" as if it would suddenly clarify everything.

I sighed, "Look, it's really not that hard to figure it out. Li Evans. Lily Evangelista. Li. Lily. Evans. Evangelista. _Lily Evans. _Me."

"But…why?" Sirius looked like this was more painful for _him_.

"To play Quidditch," I admitted, "I want—to play—_Quidditch,_" I really had to break it down for him.

He looked at me with a peculiar expression, "But you're a—"

"A girl, I know, I know, so shut up about it," I finished impatiently.

"…_Evans_," he muttered to himself, shaking his head, "It's too early for this…and I can barely hear myself think with this sodding _ringing _in my ears…" Bloody alcoholic. "I'll call a meeting with the team later and we'll talk about—"

"No, Sirius!" I said immediately, gripping his shoulders so hard again that I was sure they would bruise, "They won't want a girl as a team mate and I _have to _play Quidditch!" I told him forcefully, shaking him a bit, "What do you will happen to me if they find out _now?_ You'd be without a chaser just before the _Slytherin_ match, my uncle would get hell for instigating this and lose his job, and if it went _public—!"_

"Okay, okay, I get it," he cut me off.

"Promise me," I begged, squeezing his shoulders so tightly that only reason he probably hadn't yanked them away by now was because he had lost all feeling in them, "That you won't tell anyone until May—at the very earliest!"

Sirius nodded weakly.

"Promise?" I pressed.

"Er…"

"PROMISE?"

"O-okay,"

And though it was an unfortunate way for it to happen, I couldn't help but have a tiny smile at the thought of having gained another ally in this mad, mad world.

"And what about James?" he threw in suddenly staring at me expectedly, "Doesn't he fancy the pants off…the other you?"

"Uh…" Good question. At least I had a rebuttal: "What about Charlie? Didn't you snog the living daylights out of her in that bathtub? Put on quite a show for all the soap and towels, I suspect."

He blanched, "Um…"

So he did know what I was talking about! Ha ha…I sighed…we were both doomed, I knew, but at least I had someone (albeit, an unlikely someone) to relate to when it came to improbable romances.

* * *

Sirius remained jumpy for the remaining hour I was there, as well as the days that followed once we returned to school. He sat in a strange silence as we rode in the train compartment together with James, Remus, and Peter. He had purple bruise-like bags under his eyes and I occasionally caught him thumping his head against the window and grunting.

I was in the middle of a game of exploding snap between me, James and Remus when we were disrupted.

"_The bleeding cowards!_" someone cried down the hallway, but we didn't think much of it until our compartment door was thrown open. It was Maud, Joe, and Victor.

"What?" asked James, wiping a bit of burnt card pieces out of his eyebrows.

"We're not playing Slytherin this week!" Victor cried, waving a parchment in front of our faces, "They've switched it to the _Hufflepuffs! _We've been put off again!_"_ he chucked the paper across the room and I watched it flitter to the floor defencelessly.

I had almost completely forgotten about the match in light of everything that happened over break.

"Oh," I said.

Well this was unpleasant. Methinks that after all the drama I've been through has made more patient.

"THOSE F—" cough "—ING LITTLE PISS ANTS!" I exploded, standing angrily and knocking down the card game, "THOSE SODDING SNAKES-IN-THE-GRASS ARE PLAYING _WHO?_"

"HUFFLEPUFF!" Joe shouted, "And they automatically get out of the match after _that _with the excuse of training their reserve chaser!"

"They can't pull in a new chaser in the middle of the season!" Sirius objected, staggering out of his seat but with more fire in his eyes than I'd seen in the past couple of days.

"How do you even _know _this?" I demanded.

Victor looked a little embarrassed, "My dad's one of the school's governors," he admitted, "Dumbledore sent him the notice yesterday,"

"_Dumbledore_ agreed to this?" Remus asked, startled.

"He doesn't have a say in the matter," Maud told us bitterly, "The governors outnumber him,"

"They may have gotten out of playing us twice," Remus reasoned, "But they'll have to play us eventually. Third time's the charm, right?"

It had better be. I thought.

It was the second day back and the first day of classes—the sixth of January (I know I'll never forget the date). I had risen before anyone else that day to get on my broom before dawn to watch the sun rise and didn't get back until breakfast. No one seemed to notice and that was fine by me.

I didn't see much of the team throughout the day, actually. The dorm rooms were unusually empty and we kept to ourselves and our studies during the classes. Our first practice was right after dinner so I made sure to eat light and head down before everyone without appearing to be too suspicious.

My boots were right where I'd left them, smaller than everyone else's on the team (except Jordan's) and my trousers folded neatly on top of my practice jerseys. I pulled off my uniform and re-wrapped myself a little unsurely. I feared that I might've been, er, _growing_, and opted to put on another layer and use the excuse of the cold weather.

And that was when the strangest thing happened:

Somebody knocked_._ Like, really _knocked_. On the _door._

"Er," I said unsurely, pulling the jersey completely over my head, "Come in?"

Slowly, the door opened a fraction to reveal Victor's head, then Maud's, and then Joe's and a few others behind him. They each were looking a bit peaked in my opinion.

"Are…you guys okay?" I asked.

They swapped looks, ducked back outside for a split second were I thought I could hear Remus' voice, and then reappeared slowly. They opened the door a tiny bit more and slipped in silently one by one from Victor, Maud, Joe, Remus and to Jordan moving like they were part of some death march. Weirdoes.

They all stared at me, their backs firmly pressed against the wall like I had some contagious disease.

They looked at me.

I looked at them.

They looked at each other, and then back at me.

And who was that trying to weasel their way silently back out the door—?

I gasped suddenly, gripping the end of my shirt tightly, "SIRIUS!" Realisation had hit me hard like a brick wall, "YOU _TOLD?"_

He jumped away from the door that shut on its own weight and he swallowed nervously. Sirius quickly ducked behind Joseph.

Joe looked as though he would've liked to be anywhere but between me and Sirius at the moment and quickly moved out of the way, tripping over one of the benches in a desperate attempt to press himself against another wall.

"Li, er, I mean…um, _Lily_," Remus stumbled to his friend's defence and stared at me apologetically, "I'm afraid it was _me _who forced Sirius to tell me what, um, _happened_."

My face was deeply flushed and my left eye was ticking.

"He knows when I'm _lying,_" Sirius whispered from behind his friend, "It's bloody creepy,"

"YOU STILL _TOLD!_" I shouted again, throwing Remus out of the way, "YOU PROMISED ME, SIRIUS!" I grabbed his shoulders and pushed him against a set of lockers. The team looked as though they were about to help their captain, but then appeared to change their minds by backing away.

Sirius yelped and hurried to his defence, "Remus heard me sleep-talking and practically wrestled it out of me! I didn't tell anyone else, I swear!" he swallowed, "I don't know how everybody else found out!"

"E-everybody else?" I squeaked. A horrible feeling had sunk into my stomach as I slowly let go of Sirius and looked at the rest of the nervous team, "D-do you mean everybody…or _everybody_?" I asked them.

The team shuffled.

"Sirius told me," Remus admitted again.

"I overheard Sirius telling him," said Victor.

"Victor told me during Charms," confessed Joseph.

"I read Joe's diary," Maud divulged. ("It's a _journal!"_ he was corrected)

"And Maud started screaming and shouting 'Evans is a woman!' after he read it and I was the passing by his dorm when I heard and called the team together," Jordan finished.

I processed this gradually, "So…no one's told James?" I said hesitatingly.

The team looked amongst themselves before shaking their heads.

Sighing in relief, I collapsed on the bench.

"Thank heavens," I breathed into my hands.

Everyone stayed quiet for a moment, probably sharing a couple of looks between themselves.

"So…" started Maud, "You're…you're really…you know?"

I lifted my head out of my palms, "A girl?" I finished dryly.

Maud seemed to blush at the very idea and said nothing more.

"Do the professors know?" Victor asked.

I scoffed, "Do you really reckon Dumbledore or the rest of the professors would've let me play anymore if they had known? And if they actually ever _found out _I'd be in detention from now to my next life if they didn't expel me first!"

"I'm still amazed that you were able to fool them in the first place," said Remus honestly.

"You're telling me," I grumbled bitterly.

"So what do we do _now?_" Joseph asked somewhat dispassionately from against a locker, "We've got a match against Ravenclaw soon,"

I looked at them all, my motley fellow teammates who had stood by me for my first semester at Hogwarts. They were my friends. They had trusted me as much as I trusted them, which in retrospect, wasn't very much since I hadn't keyed them into my secret. If they had known, maybe they could've helped me more, respected my privacy a little and been a more empathetic to my plights.

It dawned on my mind in a grim sense that Sirius had not betrayed, but rather, I had betrayed the team by not giving them my full loyalty. They had trusted and respected me, and I was the one who let them down.

They were still staring at me, waiting for me to respond as I pondered this unhappily and I wished I knew what to tell them.

"I want to play Quidditch," I settled for at last, "And in September, Sirius and Remus mentioned that the school's governors were planning on discussing allowing girls to play on the teams. If I can make it through just these next few months…" I trailed off unsurely. If I did make it through the next semester, then what? I showed up to Hogwarts as Lily Evans, the girl who didn't even technically go to school there? "Maybe I'll…" I stopped short. This wasn't just my problem anymore, it was everybody else's too; "Maybe _we _will have more options."

"So you still want to play?" Victor said incredulously, "And as Li Evans?"

"I don't _want_ to have to play as Li Evans," I whined, "I want to play as _Lily!_ I want to _be _Lily again! I want to have long hair and put on makeup in the morning! I want to wear _skirts_ that are voted No. 1 in _Witch Weekly's _annual European uniform special! I want to wear my heels that Anatolia took from me and I _want to have a boyfriend!_" They all looked away quickly at this, but I tactfully ignored them, "I _don't _want to have to run around all the time to make sure I won't be walked in on when I'm changing or going to the loo or wear ugly grey trousers!"

"I'm sorry," Jordan said earnestly in his voice that was still an octave or so higher than the rest of the team's.

I took every ounce of strength in my body not to pull him for a bone-crushing hug.

"It's okay, Jordan," I managed, blinking my eyes furiously, "You didn't do anything,"

"But _can _we do anything?" Jordan asked, speaking for the team.

I looked at him and he, unlike everybody else in the room, still stood the closest to me and looked at me in the same: respect, admiration, and kindness.

"You can let me _play_," I said in a murmur, staring at not him, but at everyone.

Victor was the first to speak, "I don't have any problems with playing with him—her," he corrected quickly, looking at me apologetically, "She's been a easy to work with so far and I haven't had _too _many problems with her,"

He must've been referring to that incident where I dropped the quaffle on his head when I thought he wasn't paying attention during practice.

Joe grunted unhappily, "She's a _girl,"_

"_She _is right _here,_" I said pointedly.

"Well _you_ already knew you were a girl!"

"And so does everybody else now!"

"Not until a of couple hours ago!"

"Only because Sirius can't keep his mouth shut!"

"He wouldn't have had to keep any secrets if you'd been telling the truth!"

"If I _had_ told you the truth I wouldn't have been able to try out for the team!"

"Because girls don't _play _Quidditch—!"

"—WELL _THIS _ONE DOES!"

And that was that.

The team looked at each other uneasily.

"I…" Maud started off, "I don't think it really matters," he said carefully, rubbing his neck, "We've been doing really well this season. And as long as…Evans is still _Evans_ and we keep winning…what difference does it make?"

My point exactly!

"And Sirius, the _captain,_ doesn't have any problems with me playing, _right?_" I asked him, pursing my lips.

"Nope, none at all," he answered quickly, clasping his hands together in front of him.

"Then this stays between the team and _only _the team," Remus decided out loud as if to clarify everything. "No professors," he said _very _sternly. Who knew he had such a streak of defiance in him?

"Agreed," one or two of the players said, the others merely nodded.

"Minus James!" I chirped in quickly.

They grumbled a bit at this.

But I still loved them all the same.

"Wait…why can't we tell James?" Jordan asked, confused.

The team looked at each other and shuffled awkwardly. Remus cleared his throat and Victor sneezed.

"I'll tell you when you're older," I promised, patting him on the shoulder.

* * *

I cringed as I watched a poor Hufflepuff get nearly knocked off his broom. I had a quill in my hand that I was supposed to be using to write out their strategies (again) but I was a bit distracted at the moment.

"So," I said, biting my lip as I watched the Slytherins tear up the field, "Did you have a good holiday?"

Severus looked at me dourly.

"Oookay,"

That Saturday I again found myself sitting next to the crotchety Slytherin in the stands. We weren't too far from where we sat the last time (the shock of knowing that Snape _jinxed _James' broom often resurfaced when I was near him was only amplified as I watched the game). The match had gone on for nearly twenty minutes before he sat next to me rather unexpectedly and another half hour passed before I realised who I was sitting next to. I said nothing more than a polite hello, commented on the weather conditions before I finally accepted the painful silence.

However, ten minutes later, Snape was the one to break it, "Your team has been acting rather peculiar ever since the start of the semester," he noted, "Any reason behind their sudden anxiousness?"

"Nope," I said quickly, almost started as he addressed me, "None at all,"

"Of course," he smiled ruefully, "The team _knows_ and little Miss Evans has charmed them all into not telling a soul, I presume?"

I sucked in a breath and prayed that no one heard that remark, but luckily something dramatic happened on the field and the stands gasped loudly and cringed.

"You don't know that," I said quietly.

"Don't I?" his mouth quirked.

Ugh. He so did.

"…but you're not going to tell anyone," I said slowly, "Right?"

The cheering was suddenly so loud that I could barely hear him say a little more than ruefully, "No,"

The Slytherin stands erupted into the loudest set of cheers yet and I could safely assume that they had won, but Severus refused to break eye contact with me.

"Thank you for not telling anybody," I said. I couldn't ever remember thanking him properly before.

Severus blinked at me and slowly rose with the rest of the stands.

"It's your life you're ruining," he said noncommittally, "And you're thanking me for not saving you from yourself," Snape shook his head and began to skulk off, but I would have none of that.

Quickly, I caught up with him at the edge of the stands, "What's that supposed to mean?" I demanded.

He leaned over to me slightly in order to lower his voice, "What do you think will happen once the year is over?" he asked, "Or how about next year? After graduation? What will your papers say? Li, or Lily?" his eyes were frighteningly dark, "Are you honestly prepared to live the rest of your life in this lie you created?" With that said, he left me and disappeared into the crowd.

I had hoped that when he went, he would take this dark cloud of gloom with him, but it seemed to hover thickly in air, suffocating me. A shaky sob was tearing at my throat, struggling to break free, but I quickly brushed it off like a hearty cough.

He was right, I knew, and I absolutely hated it.

* * *

What Severus had said left me a little unhinged for weeks after as most of my conversations with him often did; I, probably like my deranged uncle, hadn't thought much about my future. We were both "here and now" type of people and worried about our consequences later at more inconvenient times.

I had had a strange dream the night before. I had been in a giant Quidditch stadium on my broom zipping along the field with the quaffle when I realised that while my hair was still short I was in my favourite knee-length blue dress from back home. The thousands and thousands of people then started jeering at me and when I looked down, the quaffle had turned into James' sneering face. I dropped the quaffle/James' face and for some reason let go of my broom while the crowd seemed to morph into thousand and thousands of _Agnes' _all screaming and crying out to me.

Fortunately, I can't remember anything after that. Shudder.

I suppose that thinking about the consequences of my actions right before my match was not the smartest idea. I couldn't afford to be distracted the slightest bit. The team was still reeling in from the shock of learning my secret so I knew they were going to be a bit distracted during the match and I would have to make up for it myself. I needed to _keep myself together_.

Calm, cool, collected. Yes, that was me. Calm, cool, and collected Lily. Er, Li, I mean.

Ugh, I felt sick.

There was a loud pointedly made knock on the door.

"HELLO?" said the voice on the other side, "IS _ANYBODY _IN THERE?"

"Oh for the love of—I'm _dressed! _You can come in!" They were late, I noted unhappily. I hadn't left before them _that_ early.

The door cracked open and a head appeared and looked around the room just in case I had decided to lie. Upon seeing that I was indeed fully dressed, the door was opened further.

For the love of _Merlin…_

"Come on!" I snapped, annoyed, as they silently filed into the room as if they were on a death march. "The game's gonna start soon! What took you so long?"

James grunted as he filed in, "I couldn't find my game jersey after breakfast. We tore apart the dorms looking for it and somehow ended up in Jordan's room," he motioned his thumb at our seeker.

Jordan sent me a knowing look.

I blanched, "Oh," Well; I guess they were trying their best to keep James from coming down and giving me enough time to get dressed.

The team sat down slowly on the benches—when I ended up along on the first bench I couldn't help but roll my eyes. James sat down next to me but with plenty of "personal guy space" in between, of course.

Sirius cleared his throat and we all listened in rapt attention.

"Er," he said. He was silent for about half a minute, "So here we go. Good luck, team,"

"_What?"_ said James, nonplussed.

The team cringed.

I stared, slack-jawed. What kind of pep talk was _that?_

The announcer started listing off our names and knew that this was where we were supposed to go onto the field. I walked somewhat dimly next to James with Victor on his other side as Sirius quickly led us out onto the pitch where the Ravenclaw captain was doing the same to his team.

He and Sirius met in the middle and shook hands rather apologetically. I supposed that they both figured that their playing each other again was a stupid farce thanks to the Slytherin team. _No one _seemed particularly thrilled that Gryffindor wasn't playing Slytherin that day.

Sirius walked back over to Joseph and me, James, and Victor walked up to the centre of the field.

"Chasers ready?" the referee asked.

We all nodded and gripped our brooms tightly.

The whistle blew, the stands cheered, and I was already streaking through the air with the quaffle at hand.

"_And the toss up goes to Gryffindor!"_ cried the announcer.

HA HA! I _loved_ being the first person to get a hold of the ball in a match. It was that brief moment where all the slates are clean and I get to be the first one to mark the tally. My grin was almost feral as I tucked the quaffle against the crook of my elbow and made sure it was tightly pressed against my side. I was rocketing down the whole pitch, leaving players and bludgers in the dust, feigned a left, shot right and in seconds, I had the first ten points of the game.

The crowd cheered, but I hardly noticed as James high-fived me as we passed.

My hand tingled with excited nerves for nearly five minutes after, and that was my excuse for Ravenclaw scoring the next goal. Swearing in such a way that I used to cringe when I heard a word like it used, I set out not to let James distract me by forcing my eyes not to search for him on the pitch.

Ravenclaw then promptly scored again.

And again.

And again.

And _again._

"LI, IF YOU DON'T THROW ME THAT GODDAMN QUAFFLE _RIGHT NOW—!"_

All right. So maybe avoiding James in the middle of a match wasn't the best idea. This wasn't going to be easy…Oddly enough though; Sirius didn't look as if he were about to murder me.

"LI!" He shouted as I practically threw the quaffle at the Ravenclaw chaser by being so distracted.

"Sorry!" I answered back, ducking under players and chasing after the quaffle.

"_LI!_" he shouted again, annoyed.

I turned my head slightly to see him right behind me. I was about to put on an extra burst of speed, but…

"EVANS!" he snapped in finality as he swooped over next to me and grabbed the front of my broom, successfully halting me, "What the _hell—?"_

"I know! I know!" I said hurriedly, nearly sliding off the back of my broom, "It won't happen again!"

"What is going _on _with you and Vic—?"

"_And—did the Ravenclaw beater just _defend _two Gryffindor chasers?"_ the announcer sounded incredulous by the very idea.

Stunned to hear this, I turned around to see Nigel Lovegood with a bat over his shoulder, staring at me.

"All right, you two?" he asked.

I was almost unable to respond. He had just gone _completely _against regulation and defended the opposing team!

"_Nigel_—" I started, stunned.

He shrugged, "It was a one-time deal," he explained, "That one was aiming for your head and Joanna would have _killed_ me,"

Ha, even after months of dating he still blushed when he talked about her.

"Thank you," I said at last, silently prompting James to do the same.

"Yeah…thanks," he said, but perhaps a touch resentfully.

"_Would Potter and Evans PLEASE stop FRATERNISING with the ENEMY?" _the announcer cried.

Ah, he had a point. Victor was body-spiked between the Ravenclaw chasers and James and I were just sitting here. Oops.

"Get your head in the game, guys," Nigel said with a bit of a worried tone, "We're pulverising you," and off he flew.

"I'll block the third chaser," James told me.

"And I'll get the pass," I finished, flying off in a similar direction as James.

He succeeded in cutting off the third Ravenclaw chaser and I flew high up next to the tallest goal post, far away from the keeper.

"VIC!" I shouted loudly, waving my arm, "I'M OPEN! _VICTOR!_"

I know Victor saw me. He locked eyes with me. But he _deliberately _avoided me and continued to try and back out of the corner he was it by throwing the ball in the vague direction of the left hoop and missed by a mile. My blood boiled.

_I was wide open! _I wanted to scream. I was practically sitting there having a picnic in front of the bleeding goalposts for heaven's sake! I swirled on my broom to yell at him, but he was already down the pitch.

"What's the hell was _that?"_ James yelled over at me as he began to follow our third chaser, "_What's going on with the team?_" he asked as he saw Sirius and Joseph exchange a quick set of furious words before splitting up.

"I don't know," I answered, gritting my teeth and following.

But I was sure as hell going to find out.

Ravenclaw scored for the twenty-second time that hour and we were growing wearisome. James had yelled at Victor four times about not passing the ball, Maud had been strangely quiet by the goalposts, and Joe kept sneering at Sirius.

I had never wanted Jordan to catch the snitch just to end the match more than I did just then.

I gritted my teeth and halted my broom as Ravenclaw stole the ball from Victor. Again. They only made it twenty yards before they lost possession to James. I quickly followed, coming up on his left, completely out of our formation.

"Li," he said over the wind, nearly flat against his broom, "We _need _to call a time out. We need a chance to catch our breath." Boy, did I ever know. I was practically swimming in my own sweat. "Do you know what's up with everyone? They were fine at practice," he was concerned and he had every right to be; our hopes for the championship were going down the toilet.

"No," was my immediate answer, but I then found myself admitting almost too quietly, "I mean…yes,"

James glanced ahead to make sure we weren't about to fly into any rogue bludgers, and then looked at me expectantly.

I swallowed, "James…there's something I need to tell you—"

And I honestly had every intention of spilling my guts right then and there in the air, in the middle of a Quidditch match with the whole school watching. With the way he looked on the broom with his hair even more out of control than usual, his lips looking even attractive as he frowned, I probably would've confessed every single dirty little secret I had if he asked me. And I just might have too if half the crowd hadn't all groaned again at the same time.

"_No, no! WATCH OUT, POTTER!" _the announcer cried, but it was too late. With James obviously distracted, one of the chasers had neatly popped out the quaffle from under his arm.

"Damn it!" James swore, cutting me off as he shot forward, "Get Sirius to call a time-out!"

Pulling myself out of a mild reverie, I ignored him and followed, "No!" I was uncomfortably close to him even for my standards, "Get up the third goal post and go wide," I told him, "_I'll _get it back," I didn't give him a chance to disagree as I flew to the other side.

We scored, easily, but only because Victor had accidentally flew into a loudmouth chaser for Ravenclaw. The whistle blew and the referee announced the penalty and we slowly flew over the other side where Maud was hovering around the posts.

All chasers flew down to the other end; the Ravenclaws giving us doubtful looks.

"_Bishop_," James snapped at Victor from beside me, "What kind of game are you playing here? Li was wide open! What the hell is going on with you?"

"Why don't you go ask _Evans,"_ Joe sneered as he passed with a club over his shoulder.

I glared after him.

"Li?" he asked incredulously, glancing between me and Victor, "What do you mean?"

The stands erupted into cheers. I looked and saw that the Ravenclaw chaser had scored again.

"Gryffindor possession!" The referee yelled. I couldn't have asked for a better distraction.

"Just get the quaffle!" I yelled at him, setting myself open for a pass.

James succeeded in getting the quaffle and threw it to Victor. He offered me a weak pass that had me nearly leaning out of my seat to get it.

"BLUDGER!" Jordan cried almost directly above me.

I got my balance back single-handedly, looked left and saw that, sure enough, a bludger was making it's a beeline straight for me and…_why_ were Sirius and Joe _both _chasing after it? There were _two _of those, you know! I swerved and easily avoided the rogue ball, but had to duck as the two beaters flew over me, swatting at the bludger. With a loud _crack_ I could tell that one of the two had nailed it.

A moment later, Sirius passed in front of me. A moment later so did Joe. I blinked, and there was Sirius again. And then Joe once more. And then—

Wait a second…they were _circling me!_ I could barely contain my fury. _That's _why we were having so many problems with the bludgers! Sirius and Joe were both practically trailing me!

It was moments after I realised this, I was about to turn on my broom to go after Sirius and strangle him. But it was the thud I heard that distracted and made me whirl around. Or maybe it was the collective gasp of the crowd that drew my attention towards him. Girls screamed, boys cringed, but I did neither as I sat horrified at what I saw.

From what I could tell, the bludger nailed James right in the stomach with such an amount of force that he was thrown from his broom and into the side of the elevated stands, hitting his head and back in what I could only assume be a painful position. The wood probably groaned on impact and splintered, but I couldn't tell. All I _could _see was James fluttering to the ground at the other end of the pitch with no way of my getting there in time to save him.

Gasping slightly for air and squinting my eyes furiously so that no panicked tears would leak out, turned so sharply that I was practically sitting on top of the referee.

"TIME OUT!" I yelled at him, voice cracking.

The startled young brown-haired man regarded me curiously for a moment before popping the whistle out of his mouth.

"Only captains can call a timeout," he said, putting the whistle back in his mouth and flying off.

Miffed, I leaned into my broom and steered it towards the other end of the pitch.

"Sirius!" I snapped impatiently as he was about to pursue a bludger. He stilled, the bat frozen above his head as the rogue ball got away, "Call a time out!" I told him frantically, waving my arms wildly towards the ground where James had landed.

Lowering the bat, he turned towards me distractedly, "Evans, he'll be _fine_—"

I saw Miss Pompfrey, the medical witch in training, rushing over to his unmoving body.

"CALL A TIMEOUT!" I repeated more forcefully and a tad desperately.

"_No,_" he said, "We're in the middle of a game, Ev—"

And then I snapped.

"_Woah!" _said the announcer, "_Looks like there's a bit of a disagreement between Evans and Black on the field and…oh, yes, he is_ most definitely _bleeding,"_

I had punched him. I had actually _punched _Sirius so hard that he dropped the club and nearly rolled right off his broom. Distantly, I could feel the pain in my knuckles; I could hear the shocked gasps of the crowd and the murmurs of disapproval from the professors.

A whistle blew, signalling that Ravenclaw had scored yet again.

"_Evans!"_ hissed Victor, flying over from my left, "What are you _doing?_"

"Yeah, _Li,_ what the hell was that?" Joe came up next to Sirius who sat, stunned, on his broom with a hand to his nose as he tilted his head back, "You all right, man?" he asked.

"She _punched me!" _he hissed in a congested sort of voice, tilting his head towards his fellow beater.

"She clobbered you _good_," Jordan agreed from above.

"AM I THE ONLY ONE WHO'S NOTICED THAT JAMES MIGHT BE DEAD?" I flailed my arms a bit in eccentricity.

The first warning whistle blew.

"He's not dead, _Evans,"_ said Sirius unhappily, "It wasn't even a thirty foot drop—"

"THIRTY FOOT—?"

"And I know that you've got all these girly feelings going on—"

"_Well there certainly seems to be something wrong with the Gryffindor Quidditch. You better watch your back, Black, I think you're losing control of your team,"_

The team held me back this time, but not little Jordan. He had charged _down _onto Sirius, not only nearly losing his seating, but Sirius' as well.

I never knew the little guy had it in him.

Victor had easily held me back by knocking my broom nearly ten feet to the side, but it had taken muscle-maniac Joe to pry Jordan off of his captain and set them both right on their brooms.

I sat there, stunned into silence.

By now, Maud had flown over, upset over letting Ravenclaw score.

"What's going _on?_" he demanded.

"Evans has gone mental _again—"_

"—punched Sirius—"

"—saw him fall and hit—"

"—is worried about James—"

"—and then Jordan tried—"

"—only because she's wants to—"

"—_my face!—"_

"—being absolutely ridiculous—"

"GUYS!" I exasperated. Jeez, some team.

"_And it looks like the entire Gryffindor team seems to be arguing over something. I'll tell you, folks, I really don't think that even if they get their act together that they'll be able to pull through without their strongest chaser,"_

"_GUYS!" _I shouted again, frantically. Jordan was trying to stay in between Maud and Victor who was shoving Maud a bit dangerously and Joe was arguing heatedly with Sirius while I sat there deftly.

The second whistle blew and I could see the Ravenclaws waiting curiously in the middle of the pitch.

"Is there a problem, boys?" the referee asked, flying close enough for me to see that he was raising a brow.

Either the team went quiet, or I was finally able to block them out. I looked down below and saw the nurse summoning a stretcher and carrying James off the pitch along with my hopes for the championship. I turned and stared a Sirius.

He looked at me and then at the rest of his unmoving team.

"We'd like a timeout, ref," he sighed, lowering his hand to grip the handle, revealing his bloodied nose.

I nodded in affirmation. _Finally, _I thought, heading towards the ground. I was already swinging off my broom before my feet touched the grass and assumed that the team was dutifully following me into the locker room.

I waited until the door swung shut on its own before whirling on them.

They would later tell me that the shade of red my face had taken was _surly _unhealthy.

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

**Oh dear…I think I'm coming rather addicted to these cliffhangers. Trust Sirius to be unable to keep a secret :eye roll:**

**Again, sorry for the delay. D=**


	16. Big Girls Don't Cry

**"Girl Got Game"**  
**By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **8 July 2008  
**Chapter Sixteen  
**"**Big Girls Don't Cry"**

**:-:**

"What _the hell_ was that?" I demanded to know once the door was firmly shut behind the last person.

Nobody answered, but they all knew _exactly _what I was talking about.

"This—this is just _ridiculous!" _I roared, "Are you really _that _willing to risk the _championship _for god's sake? Are you?" Silence. "Well then, could somebody _please _let me know just WHAT THE HELL is running through your heads?"

There were no takers so I started with Victor. And by "starting with Victor" I mean grabbing the front of his robes and throwing him back against the closest set of lockers, "Why," I asked ferociously, "won't you _pass me _the stupid _quaffle?_" I demanded to know, "HM?"

"I—I—" he pulled himself away from the lockers but I pushed him back quickly.

"Haven't I been able to catch everything you've thrown at me all year?" I demanded, invading his personal space just a _little _bit, "Haven't I scored _just as many _goals as you and James? I HAVE, HAVEN'T I?"

I could see him swallowing nervously.

"And _Maud,"_ I said dangerously, turning away from Victor (who visibly sagged in relief), "I swear to GOD if you don't stop staring at my chest liked it's about to pop out and poke you in the eye, I WILL kill you!"

Maud, who had been leaning carefully on his broom, nearly fell over.

"If you have to think of me as a man to really play, then think of me as a man!" I never thought I would find myself saying a statement like _that_.

"But...you're a _girl,_"

As _if_ I didn't already know...

"_Yes, _I'm a girl," I said hotly, "But I am _not _some fragile figurine that will break if you throw me a hard pass!" I shouted angrily, "I am _not _going to cry if I get hit by a bludger! Daniels, Black," I addressed the beaters snappishly, "Where the _hell _were you when that bludgers was on James?"

"Uuh,"

"Er,"

I rolled my eyes "You both can't keep hovering around me just in case a bludger passes within thirty feet of my broom! James and Victor are getting their arses handed to them by _a ruddy ball_ because you keep trying to protect _me!_ I've been fine for the whole bloody school year and just because you figure out _one little secret _doesn't mean I've changed in any way, shape or form!" I paused for a minute to, you know, breathe, and observe their embarrassed, ashamed, and chagrined faces, "I am _abso-bloodly-lutely_ no different than _Li _Evans, the person you have been training with all school year! I was with you when James was being a dip-shit, I was there when Sirius swallowed the cap to his water bottle, you guys were there for me when I had my _bleeding organ _ripped out of me _and _we've gotten along just fine as people! Not as men, not as women—_just people!_ Members of the Gryffindor Quidditch team! Because _everyone _in this room is a member of _this team_ because they have given their two hundred percent towards our goals every single day! Even those who _aren't _out on the pitch with clubs or brooms," I gestured to Remus, the loyal team manager, "I _am _a member of _this team _and _this team_ is GOING TO WIN THE GODDAMNED CHAMPIONSHIP EVEN IF I HAVE TO SWALLOW THE RUDDY QUAFFLE WHOLE TO GET THROUGH THE GODDAMN GOAL POSTS!"

I would like to say that everyone in the locker room burst out into a raucous applause and carried me out on their shoulders chanting, "LIL-Y! LIL-Y! LIL-Y!"

But, as you can imagine, they didn't.

They just...sat there and stared at me like I had grown an extra head. I scratched my neck just to make sure that I hadn't.

I stood there, breathing heavily for about ten seconds before recomposing myself, "Er...could you guys say something?" I asked them weakly, adrenaline evaporating rapidly.

Seriously, you could cut the tension in the room with a knife. After I had scarified those uber-cute skirts at the beginning of the year in order to play Quidditch, I _was not_ about to deal with this from my teammates.

"_Anything?" _I was kind of hoping that someone would help me out.

But they looked amongst themselves unsurely…doubtfully. Like what I was saying had no sense. And then, after everything I had been through…

I started to _cry_.

Bawling is more like it. Painful sobs wracked my chest and made my lungs heave uncomfortably.

"Er, L-Li?"

Sniff, "Y-yes?"

"Are you…all right?" It was Remus.

"Mmhm," I nodded so furiously that I thought I could hear my brains rattling.

I then thought I heard Victor whisper to Sirius who was closest to me, "Is…is she _crying?_"

"I don't know; I've never heard anyone make that kind of noise before," he whispered back. He gulped and then asked unsurely, "Um…Lily? Are you cry—?"

"I AM NOT CRYING!" I informed them with limited patience as they quickly jumped away from me, "MY EYES HAVE SIMPLY SPRUNG A LEAK, YOU _PRATS!_"

"Oh," they all said uncertainly, slowly sitting back down to stare at me some more.

I sniffed before snapping at them, "Well _fine, _you lot can just s-sit there a-a-and watch me c-cry!" the last bit came out as sort of an embarrassing wail.

"C-come off it, Evans," Joseph said shakily, patting me on the back, "Big girls don't cry,"

I sobbed, "_Yes we do!_" Especially when the love of my life falls to his almost-death and lays unmoving on the ground and I don't even know if he'll be okay and I can't even see him—

Wait. Oh my god, hold the phone and stop the presses.

…_Love?_

_LOVE?_

GOOD LORD, WHEN_ THE HELL _DID I ACTUALLY FALL IN LOVE WITH JAMES POTTER?

I suddenly wailed louder, but this time for a different reason.

Someone, probably Jordan, must've misunderstood the cause of my (ugh) crying because suddenly there was a set of arms wrapped around my waist in a tight hug, and then another set around my shoulders from one side, then the other side and soon there were more arms curled around my torso than I could count.

"GROUP HUG!" Sirius declared and I was suddenly squeezed within an inch of my life from all sides. Everyone, including myself, laughed; the spell between us was finally broken.

We stood like that with my sobbing fit finally fading until a knock came at the door and everyone sprang apart like we'd all been struck by lightening. I sobered almost instantly, but I think Joe was still a little teary-eyed himself.

"Good news, everyone!" said James as he walked in like he owned the place, never minding the fact THAT HE HAD JUST PRACTICALLY FALLEN OUT OF THE DAMNED SKY. "I can still play," I was fairly sure he was grinning lopsidedly, but I couldn't be quite sure.

"Oh, that's…good,"

"Uh-huh,"

"Cool,"

There was silence for a moment, "You'd think as my team mates that you'd be a bit happier to see my conscious," he remarked dryly.

"We're glad your okay, James!" Jordan amended.

"Er, yeah,"

"Uh,"

"Mmph…"

"Right," I could feel the wry look pulling at his features as he paused for a second, "Where's Evans?" he wanted to know, peering around and then freezing, "What," he asked me flatly, "are you doing down there?"

In truth, I was under the bench. I had dived below everyone so that he wouldn't see me in such a state.

"I…" I what? I lost a girly earring? Dropped a contact lens? Trying to make my face less puffy looking so it didn't look like I'd been crying? I _what _exactly? "I…I'm resting,"

"On the floor," he said in the same tone.

"Yes, James, on the floor," I rolled my eyes.

He looked at me weirdly, "Well, do you want to get up so we can go back out and play?"

I rose with as much dignity as possible, "I suppose so," I said nonchalantly.

"What's the strategy?" he asked, looking at Sirius.

Our dear captain blinked stupidly, "Oh. Just…go out there and do your best and beat Ravenclaw arse et cetera…"

And this is who they willingly chose to be captain. _Honestly_.

James even pursed his lips at Sirius and then glared at Victor. "So then are we ready?" he asked, looking at us.

I curled my lips and locked eyes with every single team member present, all of whom stared straight back at me, "I think so," I told him decidedly.

He looked back out at the team and his gaze settled on Joe a little warily, "What's wrong with you, Daniels?" James asked.

Joe coughed, rubbed one of his eyes and turned away, "Got somethin' in my eye, is all," he muttered, looking red.

* * *

We won the game. Barely. We would still have to rely on Ravenclaw losing to Hufflepuff in the next match in order to secure our spot in the championship.

That night after dinner, James was whisked off to the hospital wing to get inspected by that crazy healer intern who kept insisting that there could be some possible internal damage. I personally think that she just wanted another chance to gawk at James' naked chest again (HOW IT WAS NECESSARY FOR HIM TO REMOVE HIS JERSEY WHEN IT WAS HIS _HEAD _THAT WAS INJURED IS _BEYOND_ ME) but whatever. The intern smiled prettily at the team and informed us that James would be spending the night so she would be able to "check up on" him during the night to make sure he hadn't slipped into a coma or something.

Stupid perverted cradle-robbing and scalpel-wielding tart.

But also that night, the team had taken advantage of James' absence for a "team sleepover" in our dorm. Peter actually took it pretty gracefully when we said it was only for the team and I was grateful. I don't think he would have reacted well if he saw me painting my toenails during the night.

Well, it's not like I usually ran around barefoot so no one would actually _see_ them! And red is the Gryffindor colour!

I wore my comfiest and baggiest sweatshirt so all of my…assets…could be free without being noticeable, and my oldest flannel pyjamas and no charms around my face to make it look more masculine. My hair even looked fluffier when I ruffled it because I used my favourite conditioner in the bottom of my trunk.

We were all talking pretty loudly when I heard something.

"Shh, shh! Guys!" I hissed, motioning for them to be silent for a second.

We all held our breath, hearing the footsteps coming swiftly down the hall. A moment later, the door silently opened and Sirius peered in, grinning.

"Ta-da!" he said, pulling up a large case of butterbeer.

We all let out muffled cheers as he began to pass them out.

Once the entire packaged was distributed, Sirius kneeled up with one leg set in front, "To Lily Evans!" he cried, raising his own personal bottle that he purchased at the Hog's Head on our last trip to Hogsmead, "The maddest broad on this side of the channel!"

"To Lily!" the cheered, crashing their bottles together.

I loved my teammates.

I loved my friends.

"To Gryffindor," I added, raising my own glass, "And to teammates, friends and victory and such,"

"Here, here!" they cheered.

So there we were: me, Sirius, Remus, Joe, Maud, Victor and Jordan all cramped in the tiny dorm rooms and trying to keep quiet as we sloshed around our Butterbeer (or firewhiskey) bottles like the loons we really were. I think Sirius may have slipped some whiskey into my bottle, but I didn't care as much as I should have. I thought my face would split if I smiled any harder and I ended up laughing so much that I cried and the team had to attack me again with fierce hugs that nearly crushed me.

This was the brotherly love I had been missing out on my whole life. And as much as I loved it, I tried not thinking about how I was setting myself up for an inevitable heartbreak.

* * *

The prime example of this was not too long after James was released from Miss Pomfrey's evil clutches—I MEAN, from the hospital…

We were in the dormitory and both deep into our homework. Well, that is as long as doodling can constitute as homework then that statement is true. I was on my bed, tapping my woollen socks on the sheets and James was scribbling away in the corner, occasionally ruffling his hair. Luckily, his back was to me so there was no evidence of my swooning.

"Hey, Evans?" said James from his desk.

I sighed (not in the swooning way of course. Just a typical 'you're disturbing me from my, er, "work"' kind of sigh), "Yes?"

"Tell me what you know about Lily." It wasn't a question but pretty darn close to a command.

I froze. "What do you want to know?" I asked warily.

"Hm…Everything, I suppose,"

"Well, uh," I started unsurely, "She's sixteen. And uh, has red hair and freckles…" I trailed off.

James rolled his eyes, "I know all that. I meant what does she like? What are her favourites?"

I put my quill down, suddenly sensing the seriousness of the conversation, and rubbed my eyes, "James, what's this about really?"

"Well," he said, fixing himself comfortably in his chair, "It's been over a month now since holidays when we last saw each other and we…you know, _kissed,_" he waved a hand vaguely like it hardly mattered anymore.

I cringed. "Yes, and?"

"I was thinking about writing her,"

Because that would go over _real _well during the morning post at breakfast.

"James," I said quickly, "How many times have you actually _seen _this girl? And talked to her?"

"Twice," he said defensively, "Once at Hogsmead and then at the after Christmas party last month,"

"And what was the last thing she said to you?" I asked, almost bitingly. Someone had to be the realistic one here. Bummer that it had to be me.

He paused, "I can't remember. She was…running away,"

"Right," I said, picking up my quill again. It was more of a prop if anything—I couldn't even figure out what subject I had on my lap.

"Well, she kissed me back!" he defended loudly.

I felt so warm in my cheeks that you probably could've lit a match right off my face.

"You practically mauled her with your mouth!" I shot back, not meeting his gaze.

"Did not!"

"Did to!" I insisted, "All she saw was some parsley hanging in the doorway and you jumped right in and—"

"How did you know about that?" he asked suddenly.

"I—what?" What'd he mean?

"How did you know that she mistook the mistletoe for parsley?"

Oh.

SHIT.

"Um…"

The boy was practically half-out of his seat by now, leaning his body in my direction, "Have you been corresponding with her?"

"A—a little," I lied, swallowing.

"Has she mentioned me?" he prompted excitedly.

"I uh…I—yes." As if I could've said no to that face…

James looked elated.

"But you've only met her _twice,_" I whined again. How is it that he only sees Lily _twice _in the span of _months_ and he gets to be crazy about her—I mean, _me_—and it took me ages to admit to just liking _him?_

He shook his head, "But it doesn't _feel _like it. She's…she's so open that it feels like I've known her forever."

"And do you know if she feels that way, too?" Of course she did. I would know, obviously.

"Why wouldn't she?" he wanted to know.

"Well, why _should _she?" It certainly wasn't his big head that made me fall in love with him, that's for sure.

"What do you mean?"

I sighed, rolled my eyes, and said nothing.

We were quiet for maybe thirty seconds. James had abandoned his homework at the desk and jumped on his bed, laying still and staring at the ceiling. He soon spoke up again.

"Hey, Evans?"

Determined, I kept my mouth shut.

Hardly deterred by my nonexistent answer, he continued, "Have you ever been…_you know_…with a girl?"

I very nearly snapped my quill in half.

"Don't you want to talk to Remus or somebody else about this?" I yelped quickly, rapidly pushing my books and parchments off my lap and into a messy heap on my bed. Time to execute Lily Getaway Technique No. 347.

He looked at me funnily, "Well I was hoping to talk to _you _about her since you actually _know her_…"

"I—I'm _really _not the best person for this—_this _kind of talk," I swallowed, preparing myself to head for the common room instead. God, I could _not _talk about myself like _THAT_ so objectively!

James sat up, confused by my behaviour, "But if I talk to Remus he'll just give me some long-winded history lesson on the origin of human affection tradition and rituals or something," he complained.

"There's nothing wrong with a good history lesson," I defended, wrestling into my jumper.

"But if I tell Remus, Sirius will know that he's keeping something from him and he'll be able to, I don't know, sneak the information right out from Remus' nose and then Sirius'll know and God knows that he couldn't keep a secret if his life depended on it…"

As if I didn't already know _that_. I wanted to scoff.

"Well," I said as detachedly as possible, "I personally think it's a little presumptuous of you to start talking about this sort of level of intimacy—"

"…and Sirius would _never_ let me live it down or date her peacefully if he thought I was actually in love with—"

I snapped my head back at him so quickly that I nearly gave myself whiplash, "Wait," I breathed, cutting him of as I turned, "You mean…you're t-talking about being in…_love_…with Lily?" My voice sort of cracked at the end. Maybe male puberty was contagious.

"Yeah," he said confusedly. I suddenly realised how much he was blushing and twisting the sheets in his hands, "What did you think I was talking about?"

"Oh, nothing," I said, suddenly relieved and plopping back onto the bed. Never mind the fact that I just wrinkled my charms homework, "So. You? Lily? Love? Continue." Honestly, this was the closest I had been to "Girl Talk" since New Year's.

He groaned. "She's just so…"

"Insane?" I offered dryly.

"_Weird,_"

I bit back a sharp remark. "Oh?" I said defensively.

"In a good way," he rectified as he saw my initial expression, "Sort of."

"Right," I grumbled unhappily.

He looked at me warily, "Are you sure you two aren't related?"

I answered a little too quickly, "Of course not! Why would you think so?"

James studied my face in such a way that it made me a little nervous, "You're…physically similar. Mentally similar, too," he muttered under his breath.

"_Hey!_" That was uncalled for!

He laughed, "You're right, I'm sorry. That's not fair. You're _definitely _more mental than she is,"

"UGH!" I threw my pillow at his head but he just swatted it away.

Once he stopped chucking, he laid back down with his foot swinging back and forth on one of the sides.

"She is pretty brilliant, though," he said after a while.

I continued to sit on bed, unmoving, just thinking. My future suddenly didn't seem so definite anymore with (most of) the team knowing my secret in addition to these feelings I had for James. Everything could blow up at any moment and I would be caught unaware—I just knew it.

"Do you think she hates me now?" he asked a little worriedly, "Since she hasn't tried to contact me?"

"No," I sighed, "No, I don't think she _could_ hate you. I just think you've swept her so cleanly off her feet that she doesn't know what to do."

"Really?" he asked in a distant sort of voice.

I nodded, biting my cheek a little, "I'm almost positive. You're far too dashing for your own good, you know," That might have been pushing it, but I couldn't stop it from slipping out of my mouth.

James chuckled, not sensing my discomfort with the subject, "So I should write her then?"

I hesitated, playing with the corners of my homework as a tempting thought ran about my brain enticingly, "How about," I started, "I send her off a letter and ask if she can make the next Hogsmead weekend?"

James almost exploded. Really.

"You will? Really?" His eyes were wide and wild as he sat up in the bed with startling speed, "DO YOU PROMISE?"

"Er, yeah. No problem," Uh…

"Right now?" he pressed.

"Sure," Why not? He might as well have just told me which dotted line I needed to give my signature in order to sign away my life.

* * *

But it turned out that I didn't even need a dotted line to sign my life away. It just sort of happened with some ill timing on everyone's parts.

It was about a week and a half later when the next Hogsmead trip was scheduled. I told James that 'Lily' said she'd come in order to 'talk things out' with him, and even with that ominous wording, he didn't seem any less delighted. To my knowledge, James hadn't mentioned the unofficial rendezvous to anyone on the team.

My girly clothes were shoved in the very bottom of my shoulder bag. The team had already left about half an hour ago after I had warned them that Lily would be making a guest appearance in the Three Broomsticks today and that they should act a little surprised.

I was nervous. I had a swarm of pterodactyls tearing up my stomach for at least three days before the scheduled trip. This wasn't anything like the previous two excursions as Lily because they had both been accidental, but this was a scheduled meeting.

It was a definite.

James, of course, didn't seem nervous at all, but maybe just a little on edge.

"You're _sure _you told her this weekend?" he asked me under his breath so no one would hear at breakfast that day.

"Yes, I'm sure," I sighed, annoyed.

"You're absolutely positive?"

"_Yes, _James,"

"And at the Three Broomsticks?"

"Yes! God, James!" I exploded, "Just…eat your breakfast and stop pestering me! She's coming, all right?"

He looked at me, scrunching his face, "What's up with you, Evans?"

"_Nothing!_" I exasperated. My appetite was suddenly gone and I couldn't bring myself to sit there any longer. "I'll see you guys at class," I mumbled to the suddenly aware team, hopping up and walking away.

Even being a little (A LOT) scared, I couldn't deny that I was at least twice as excited. I hadn't talked to James as Lily since _Christmas! _More than a month ago! How had I not exploded since then?

It was a little past noon and nearly everyone had already left for Hogsmead so I was in little danger of being seen as I skipped down the stairs, grinning widely.

I couldn't imagine waiting to get all the way to Hogsmead before changing so I ducked into a utility closet (because it wouldn't make sense for Li to walk into the gent's room and then have Lily walk out) to change clothes and fix myself up.

I had to stare at the eye shadow for a while before I remembered how to do it properly. Then I couldn't remember if I was a summer or a winter, which led to a great internal debate between the gold eye shadow and the silver.

My heart was pounding wildly as I double-checked myself in my tiny two-by-four mirror and then I double-checked the corridor before I exited the closet. The coast was clear and I couldn't help but giggle to myself as I sprinted towards the main door that would take me to the grounds and then the horseless carriages.

It was a little cloudy, but the air was still fresh. Perfect skipping weather. Unfortunately, I had only been skipping for a short amount of time before…

"Off to see Potter, then?" came an unwelcome sneer.

I halted my skipping and turned around, tossing my hair over my shoulder and said aloofly, "_Yes, _Snape, I am off to see _James,_" I had my hands on my hips and a look that said, 'what're you going to do about it?'

Snape let out a short and dry laugh, "Of course," he said, shaking his head. He was leaning against a tree near the trail that the horseless carriages took to Hogsmead, not fifteen feet away from where I stood.

I frowned, dropping my hands. "What's that supposed to mean?"

He looked like a vampire in the way he was dressed in his dark robes that contrasted his sickly pale skin and greasy hair. He looked up at me from under his wayward hair and said, "Who _else _would you change yourself for?"

I balked, not knowing how else to respond.

"They way I see it," he said, pushing himself away from the tree and walking towards me. I forced myself not to take a step back. "Is that you're probably _skipping _off to see Potter in such a manner because he _still _doesn't know just who his little roommate is."

I hated how he always had to be right.

He smiled wryly as he gauged out my expression. "I figured as much," he said.

"So why can't I just enjoy the evening with James as myself without you pestering me about it?" I asked unhappily.

Snape looked at me, standing two feet away from me now, "I'm not stopping you,"

"Well, good," I said, but I didn't move.

"Then why don't you go run along now?" he sneered at me with such a spiteful and condescending look that it made my blood boil.

I gathered my wits and glared as hard as I could, "I will," I said darkly as possible. Turning, I began to stomp off towards a carriage a little further up the path.

"And what do you think he'll do when he finds out you've been lying to him?" he drawled in that lifeless tone.

He didn't need to shout; I heard him clear enough and it made me freeze.

"You'd be worse than his last girlfriend—what was her name? Oh yes—_Danielle _from your alma mater. At least she was honest with him about what she wanted,"

My lips involuntarily curled inwards. It wasn't fair. _It wasn't fair._

I heard the gravel crunching behind me, "Yes, how _would _Potter feel when he learns that the girl of his dreams is a liar?"

A liar. I was a _liar._

"I'll tell him the truth," I gritted out.

"Would you tell him now?" he asked, curiously. He was close to my back now, "Would you tell him so close to the championship and risk winning?"

"Maybe_,_" I said. Yes, I promised myself, I'd tell him soon.

"And even then," Snape went on, "When he realises how he's opened himself up to someone he just suspected to be a loyal teammate…when it was actually just a silly little girl pretending to play Quidditch while stringing him along for all of these months. How many has it been now? Five months? Nearly six?"

"I _can _play Quidditch!" I shot back lamely.

"But can _he _play with _you _if he ever found out_, _is the real question," he threw at me.

I clenched my fists; "He _can _play Quidditch with me, and I'll tell him the truth _soon,_"

"And if he can't? What if you _lose?_"

What if we lost? I thought suddenly, my insides churning unhappily. I hadn't entertained the thought all year, but as the end of the season approached, I had to be realistic. What if after all my hard work—the team's hard work—what if we actually _lost?_

"He'd hate me," my voice was shaking. Oh god, I thought, James would hate me. There was no way that he could possibly forgive me for lying _and _for costing them the cup. A wrangled half-sob tore apart my throat, "He'll _hate _me!" I said louder. Saying it a second time didn't make it any easier. I sat down slowly in the middle of the dirt. "And then I'll have let down e-e-everyone and—and they'll all hate me too," Sirius would be disappointed with it being his first year as captain and the team would resent me because we used to perform so much better before they knew who I really was. I tried blinking and keeping my mouth straight as a line but I couldn't keep from crying.

"I won't hate you," Severus said seriously, kneeling next to me, "Even when everyone else turns on you—and they will—I won't hate you. You won't be alone,"

I wasn't alone, I assured myself a little frantically. I had friends. I had Jo, Nigel, the team, and James. They wouldn't all abandon me. _They wouldn't_. They would understand. I'd make them!

I can't be alone...I can't be alone...painful visions of arriving at uncle John's doorstep last winter after my parents funeral surfaced...images and feelings I had determinedly locked away after a painful June and July where my depression worsened came up again. I couldn't be along again...not after everything I had tried to rebuild. Something was lodged in my throat and it made me choke, "Y-you promise?" I asked him.

"I promise," he said in a completely different tone, but all I could hear in my head was my chanting promise to never be alone.

I swallowed hard, "Thank you, Severus," I blinked back more tears, "I—I really appreciate it," I leaned towards him a little.

I swear I only meant to kiss him on the cheek. I swear it. I don't know how…I deviated from that plan. Maybe I'm nearsighted and I couldn't see his face clearly. Maybe it got lost in translation, between Severus and me. Kissing friends on the cheek was normal to me back in France and I did it all the times with the girls. I just wanted to show my gratitude to him as a _friend_.

"Lily?"

But I guess friends don't turn their heads at an innocent peck on the cheek and lean in for a full-blown kiss right on the mouth after they've spotted someone like James walking up the path.

"Lily? Is that you?"

Snape had pulled away after a quick second and I sat there, open-mouthed and horrified.

Even when everyone else turns on you—and they will—I won't hate you. That was what Snape said. I just didn't see that he was implying that I'd turn on them first.

My body was still angled away from James, but he knew that he didn't have to ask who I was. He knew.

_You'd be worse than his last girlfriend…at least she was honest to him…_

I could hear his pace slowing down as he approached Snape and me on the ground.

"I'm sorry," I whispered pathetically, but I don't think he heard. My shoulders began to hunch over the rest of my body.

How could I have trusted Snape? He told me flat out that he wanted revenge against Sirius and James for when they damaged his shoulder last year! He even _admitted_ to jinxing James' broom at the first match of the season and nearly _killing _him! Murder! Cold-hearted petty murder over a bloody sport! How could I have even thought about trusting him? Everything that led up to this moment was _my_ fault for being so stupid and so naïve.

I hated myself just then. I hated myself more than I ever thought possible.

"Lily," James said again, but it sounded kind of strangled.

The cold dread began to ware away and I reddened like mad. I was embarrassed, humiliated, and looking guilty. I suppose then by turning around to face him and saying, "Wh-what are you doing here?" didn't make me sound too innocent, either.

"I was going to get my coat," he said evenly, motioning to the gloomy castle behind us. I saw in his hand a small French advertisement for a sweet shop on the coast and I almost burst out crying right there on the spot. He hadn't blinked in nearly a minute and I was starting to get worried.

I was unable speak further.

James' eyes slowly moved away from me, "Snape," he said plainly.

"Potter," he matched gamely.

It was a game, that's all it ever was. And I hadn't realised how much I'd invested in it until I suddenly lost.

I had suddenly lost everything.

"No sidekicks with you today?" Snape sneered at him.

James said nothing back.

I couldn't look up to meet his eyes because I couldn't bear to know if they would be angry, hurt, sad, resentful, understanding or I don't know what. I only looked at his oldest pair of sneakers that I knew he loved because he wore them every day when we were out of uniform or having a lazy practice. And I could judge by how steadily they turned away from me and how evenly the moved back towards the path that James would be wearing a stoic face to match.

I stood up suddenly and clumsily, never looking back at Snape.

"James," I said slowly, walking after him, "James, will you talk to me?"

"No,"

"Will you listen to me?" I asked hysterically.

"No,"

"_Please?_" I pleaded desperately.

"Go _home,_ Lily," he told me tiredly.

"I _am _home!" I shouted. England was my home, Hogwarts was my home, and the friends and family that thrived in both were all my homes. But James wouldn't listen to me.

My cheeks were wet with painful and silent tears and I pulled back on his left arm so he'd turn and look at me. He didn't shove me off, but he just kept walking. I put myself in front of him and forced him to stop.

"I don't want to talk right now," he growled, trying to pull my arms off.

I fought back against him, "But _I do!_"

"You didn't even want to _be _here!" he exploded and also succeeding in throwing my arms off of him, "Evans had to _force _you to come!" he walked further away.

I gaped, "That's not true!"

"Then why did you run away that Christmas?" he shouted over his shoulder as he turned away.

"_Because_," was my answer.

James guffawed.

"Because," I searched desperately for an answer that would make him stay, "Because I thought it would be better that way,"

"Better in _what _way?" he wanted to know. Deserved to know.

My frown kept becoming more and more pronounced as I followed him, "Because James," I said trying to build some inward momentum, "I never wanted you to get hurt again," I looked at him looking at me from under my hair for a moment before I launched myself at him. Our mouths met as we were falling back and James took most of the fall. I didn't dare move until we had both perfectly stilled.

"I'm _sorry_, James," I said again, this time more softly as I pulled back, "I'm really, _really _sorry,"

He looked at me, face softening slightly, "Lily—" he froze.

I leaned back a little, concerned.

"What?" I asked, confused.

Something had crossed his face and it made him look like he'd just been struck by lightning. James then whispered something so inaudible that I had to read his lips, _"Evans,"_ he said.

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N: **

Oy…I wrote that Lily rant!speech _aaaaaaaaages _ago.

**Sorry for the delay D= **Tis but a filler chapter for the good stuff to come! I've only got about three pages on the **next chapter **aaaaand I'm going away for a about three weeks now…but I'll work on AaD while I'm away. I've got about seven pages down.

This update was already threatened by an emergency sleepover that I was planning on going to, but it got cancelled so I thought I'd give you guys a treat.

**Watch my profile if you would like to see my activities!**

_**Love.**_


	17. Walk Away World

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **26 December 2008  
**Chapter Seventeen**  
"**Walk Away World"**

**:-:**

I couldn't believe it. After all this time and all this effort…_this _was how James found out.

_It wasn't fair._

Nothing in this whole equation was fair because no matter what the factors were, my answer would always end up being a big fat zero. Zero girliness. Zero life. Zero James. Nothing came out positive for me.

Quite violently, James shoved me off so he could leap back up and stagger backwards. "What the _hell _are you playing at, Evans?" His voice was up an octave.

"I—nothing!" I said quickly, standing as well.

"W-why are you—are you…?" he trailed off as he lost his ability to speak coherently and motioned crazily at me.

"What?" I looked down at myself unnecessarily because I knew what he had meant.

"Why are you A GIRL?" he gritted.

I tried to step towards James, but he only backed away. "I've _always _been a girl," I said slowly, raising my arms like I was surrendering. Yes, that was it; I was surrendering everything I had just so James would know the truth.

James only stared, moving in jerky movements and groaning into his hands.

"James, you _know _that it's me—_Lily,"_ I said slowly, lowering my hands in what I hoped was a calming way. "Lily Evangelista?"

"No you're—you're…_aaargh!_" he shouted out, pulling at his hair, "YOU'RE _EVANS!"_

I grabbed his wrists gently but firmly so he wouldn't rip out his roots. "Er, yes and no…" I said vaguely, swallowing painfully. "But, um, mostly yes?"

James yanked his arms away from me and I couldn't help but begin to feel more and more offended. I had thought that he would've taken it a bit better than this. I had thought he would've been…happy. Relieved, even.

"James, I'm _sorry,_" I gushed. My voice was breaking and my eyes were feeling swollen. "But if you'd just let me _explain—_"

"NO."

"But then I could—" I reached out towards him.

"_Don't touch me,"_ he shoved my arms away.

I stopped all movement, suddenly feeling cold all over. "You're really angry at me?" I asked, barely above a whisper.

"None of this makes enough _sense _for me to be angry!" he shouted crazily. His shoulders were rigid and his eyes were wide (one was even twitching) and his movements reminded me of an awkward dear not too sure about its legs.

"W-well do you want me to explain everything?" I offered unsurely. I wished my breathing were steadier. "You know, to get all the facts—?"

"NO," he snapped immediately, "I don't want to know _anything!_"

But I went on ahead anyway, "After my parents were killed last year I decided to transfer so I could get a new start and play Quidditch—"

"_I don't care!"_ he cried.

"—and they didn't have a women's team so my uncle, erm, suggested that I pretend to be a boy so that I could play and get a reputation—"

"_Stop talking," _gritted James. I could understand why, however; it _did _sound pretty ridiculous when you said it all out loud.

"—and then I still have no idea what the plan was from there but then I met you, Sirius and Remus and everyone else and I don't want to ruin anything and they said that they wouldn't tell any—"

"Wait—the _team _knows?" he glowered.

I suppose I should have withheld that bit of information.

"Only because Sirius can't keep a secret!" I said quickly.

"You told _Sirius?_" That seemed worse to him.

"Not on purpose!" I said frantically, "He walked in on me when I was changing at your house over break and I made him promise not to tell!"

James' mouth was apparently permanently unhinged and he kept running his hands through his hair.

"Look," I said calmingly, "We _can work this out. _I mean, the team and I have made adjustments with bathrooms and privacy time and changing areas—"

"Oh _I'm _sorry if _I'm _the one proving to be inconvenient for _you!_"

I pursed my lips, "Now you're being ridiculous," I said. "If you want to be a prick about this then _fine _but don't let it affect your game on the pitch."

He snorted. "The hell if I'm playing _now,_"

I blinked at him. "It'll still be me playing out there," I said with a false amount of calmness. Really, I was just starting to get pissed off.

"I don't care. I won't play!"

_He _wouldn't play? I wasn't even _allowed _to play so he just wants to shove it in my face that he can quit whenever he wants to? That selfish—_ugh! _What the hell did I _see _in him?

"If you won't play for me James," I said quietly, trying to keep my composure, "Will you at least play for the _team? _They deserve—"

"They all _lied _to me!" he shouted in an uncharacteristically shriek-y voice.

I swallowed. This was unfortunately true.

"Well, look at how you're reacting!" I defended. "Can you imagine what that would have been like if you'd known when we were playing Ravenclaw? The team was already screwing up enough and you would've just taken everything right over the edge!"

"Of course," he said sarcastically, "I guess if you'd just been honest with me from the _beginning _that _helping _and _supporting_ yo—my friends would've been out of the question!"

I hadn't even thought of that.

"You said that you would never want to be seen with someone like me!" I quoted from our initial meeting at Platform 9 ¾.

"And apparently I was right!" he shouted back. "Why _would_ I want to be with a _liar _who is always so eager to please others and will only do something just because someone told her to, and is so susceptible to peer pressure that she can't even form her own opinion and make up her own mind? Why _would _I even want to be seen with someone as weak as that?"

My fists were clenched painfully, but my heart seemed to be running everywhere.

"I am _not _weak," I said slowly and deliberately. Anger and resentment was burning like hot coals in the pit of my stomach.

James sneered. "_Please, _Evans. You would've been willing to jump in front of the damn train if it meant you could keep talking to Sirius, Remus and Peter when you first met them."

I stared at him in disbelief with my mouth hanging open. He thought I was only sticking with them because they were so evidently popular! He thought I was a social mooch! "Because _I'm shy, _James!" My face was horrendously red. "I'm freakin' _shy_ and they were being nice and talking to the new kid that everyone was just whispering about!"

"You're a _coward,_"

"You're a dickhead!" I shot back defensively.

He sneered.

Maybe insulting him was not the best way to go at the moment. He gave another hate-filled look at turned towards the _forest _of all places.

"_Don't," _I said in a staggeringly dark tone as I took a step forward, _"walk away from me,"_

Unsurprisingly, James only glared at me over his shoulder and scoffed.

"Why are you so pissed about this?" I said, scowling as I grabbed his shoulder and whipped him around roughly. "The whole team took this way better than you! And _that's _saying something! You should be _relieved_ about knowing who I am!"

James' face hardened and his hand gestures became more sporadic and less controlled, "Because you _lied_ to me. You lied to my friends and my teammates—"

"_Our _teammates!" I cut in indignantly.

"—you stuck your stupid nose where it didn't belong and risked half the team bodily harm when you made us play against Dupont and—"

"—I didn't force you if you showed up all on your own, damn it!" I snapped.

"And then in Hogsmead and during the Christmas break you seduced me—"

"_SEDUCED YOU?_" I screeched. He had taken this too far. I was so flabbergasted that I could barely speak. I didn't know _how_ to seduce someone! "How the hell did _I _seduce—? You kissed _ME_, remember?"

"And that was your plan all along, wasn't it?" he shot back, "After I told you about Danielle?"

"HA!" I laughed humourlessly and continued to clench and unclench my fists, "Why would _I _want to seduce some crazy and forlorn thick-headed _chump _that got his heart broken by some stupid French broad?" I asked him mockingly, "Why would _I_ bother dealing with some judgemental low-life who's obviously so paranoid about girls that he can't even look at one without wondering if they have an ulterior motive? And why _would _I want to be with someone who insults m-me an-and," I hoped he didn't notice my stammering, "is heartless and _mean_?"

James was red in the face and he glared at me fiercely.

"Well?" I went on mercilessly like he had, "Why _would _I?"

He went on breathing angrily through his nose for a half-minute or so. "Get _bent, _Evans—or Lily or whoever the hell you," he snarled, turning away towards the edge of the forest.

I scowled deeply, "WELL SCREW YOU, JAMES!" I shouted after him, "_SCREW—YOU!"_ And with that wonderful ending note, I watched him run into the shadowed trees and disappear.

Gracelessly, I threw myself onto the grass, completely exhausted. I wished I could just walk away from my problems like him, I thought as I watched him go. I wished I could just walk back to the time where I had _some _common sense and never would have found myself in this sort of problem. I wished I had never listened to my stupid uncle and I wished I had never ridden a stupid broom, much less ever heard the word Quidditch.

After ten or fifteen minutes of sitting with my elbows on my knees and my face in my palms, I pulled myself off the ground and walked back to the castle.

* * *

"Er," somebody cleared their throat on my left, "Lily?" Jordan whispered.

"_Yeees?_" I drew out, turning a page in my book.

He shuffled uneasily, "I—we, er, you know, the team. Um. We think that you should, uh…talk to James?" I could hear him hold his breath.

"Not gonna happen, big guy," I said detachedly, not looking up. I was seated in one of the chairs in front of the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room. I was curled up in my oldest, baggiest, and ugliest clothes with a large bar of half-eaten chocolate on the table next to me. I may have been pretending to be Li Evans at the moment, but I was first and foremost _Lily _Evans and a _girl _and I was going to mope about James _properly_, damn it.

"Oh," he said, exhaling, "Okay," I heard him walk away to the other side of the room.

"_Go back over there, you spineless slab of human meat!" _someone hissed.

How charming, Joe. Really.

In the few days that followed James finding out just who and what I was, he had not only refused to sleep in our dorm, but he also refused to come to practice. Sirius had thrown himself into a frenzy and could barely look at either of us without turning red. Meal times were the worst though; James would no longer sit next to me like he always did and no one else would fill that seat.

The team feared that he would tell someone, but contrary to what they thought, I knew that James wouldn't.

"Um, I really don't think she wants to talk about it," Jordan mumbled back.

"Try again!"

"She'll eat me!"

"Ugh! He—er, _she_—likes you more than the rest of us!"

"Why can't somebody else try?" he whined.

"Oh for the love of_—I'll _do it!" someone else snapped.

There was some shuffling around and grumbling but soon somebody new knelt in front of my chair.

"Er, Evans?" Remus said apprehensively. Normally, I appreciated it when the team called me _Evans _instead of _Li _because it made me feel more like my old self, but I was too distracted to really care.

"What?"

"How—how are you?"

"Spectacular," I lied.

"Oh," he said, "Good,"

I looked up from my book and glared at him.

"Right," Remus sighed, adjusting himself before getting down to business, "I talked to him the other night."

I stared back at him, disinterestedly, "I _cried _about him the other night," I countered, propping my book back up.

He cringed. "Yes well…I'm sorry that you did because he's really not worth it."

Warily, I peaked over the leather-bound book and asked him, "What did he say""

He sighed deeply. "Well, he wasn't exactly in a good mood…"

I groaned. He hated me.

"But that doesn't necessarily mean that he won't get over it," Remus said quickly.

I sighed, rolling my eyes. The past week had been so horrible between us that Sirius had cancelled all of our practices until it looked like James and I could get along again.

"I swear this was Slytherin's idea all along!" Sirius had cried to the team one evening. "'Get 'em on the inside!' 'Division in the bloody ranks!'"

Half of the Gryffindor tower was confused by the suddenly schism in the team. Or rather, the schism between James and me with the poor team stuck right in the middle of this mess.

"And if you're still willing to practice with Victor," Remus said slowly, "The team could get some productive work done for our next match which just might be the championship against Slytherin,"

There was some sudden series of heavy thudding coming down the stairs from the boys' dormitory.

"I'll only play if James wants me to play," I said loud enough for him to hear and hopefully sounding dignified as well as.

James didn't even break pace as he walked across the room to the exit, "Then I hope you like your feet on the ground!" he snapped back, slamming the portrait door behind him. The present Gryffindors swapped their gazes between me and where James once stood, concerned.

Remus stared after him, pursing his lips.

I gave him an, 'I-told-you-so' look and he sighed. So much for progress.

* * *

A week and a half later with all of our practices being short a chaser, Victor and I had reconciled a little bit due to the lack of James' presence.

"So…would it hurt if you got hit in the boobs by the quaffle?" he asked, lobbing a pass lazily in my direction.

I rolled my eyes. We were sitting on our brooms off to the side of the pitch, barely seven feet a part. I tossed the ball back to him. "Depends how hard it was thrown."

"How about like…" Victor threw the quaffle back at me as an example force, "this?"

I sighed. "From the front or the side?" I lobbied it back.

He shrugged as he caught the quaffle. "Either, I guess," he tossed it lightly to me.

When the quaffle returned to my hands, I picked at its surface as I crudely thought about both scenarios. It truthfully had never occurred to me—or happened to me—so I was kind of curious about it myself. Six months ago, I would have been embarrassed by the conversation, but sadly now…I was practically indifferent.

I shrugged, "No more than when you lean to far forward on your broom, I'd imagine." He cringed a bit. "Um…I would probably just get winded if I got hit in the front," I said, throwing the ball back, "And it would probably set me off balance if I got hit from the side."

Victor caught it. "Really?"

I send him a dry look. "I'm sorry, would you like to throw at me and we can find out together?"

"Oh, well um—" he stammered.

"And I personally think that you enjoy talking about my chest too much for your own good. Go get a girlfriend and ask her about _her_ chest."

"I was just—!"

"Or did Maud put you up to this?"

"But he, I mean—"

"WOULD YOU TWO _PLEASE _STOP TALKING ABOUT EVANS' _ASSETS?_"

Victor and I looked down to see that everyone else had landed and were staring quite fixedly at us.

"Right, sorry," he blushed, shrinking towards the ground.

I glowered at Sirius. "I'm allowed to talk about my own breasts, damn it!" I shouted back.

And no one argued with that (but Jordan did giggle a little).

Anyways, the team was ready to cross our fingers over the Hufflepuff-Ravenclaw game. If Hufflepuff beat Ravenclaw, then we were in the Championship. But if Ravenclaw won, we would have to play Slytherin in one last match before the finals. I honestly didn't know who to root for.

Speaking of slimy Slytherins: I was doing my best to avoid Snape at all costs because I couldn't show my face to _him _for the next century and a half. I couldn't even see us as friends any more after what had happened.

At the same time I was brooding over this, I was also perusing the stands with my binoculars rather than actually observing the game. For the life of me, I could not find James anywhere in the vicinity. I was nearly positive that he had gone down the pitch before the team but I could not spot him. It was possible that he had decided to skulk around in the dorms in attempts to avoid everyone, I thought pensively. Stupid arse-face.

The sad fact was that I was always a little anxious when I didn't know where he was. He was mean, crotchety, and emotional crippled but I still missed him. I missed him, and he wasn't even really gone. How pathetic is that?

I wanted to talk to him again, I decided suddenly as Hufflepuff scored their first goal. I thought of him in the dorms instead of the pitch watching the game he loved. Alone. By himself. I bit my lip as I considered everything.

I figured it might be better to approach him at a time a place where no one could hear him yell at me. Hmm. Two weeks seemed like enough brooding time, I decided with a newfound sense of vigour. It was time to make him apologise.

I nudged Jordan, who was completely wrapped up in the game and biting his note-taking quill next to me.

"I'm going to go back the dorms if the team asks, okay?" I said.

"Nnggh," he answered. I took that as a 'sure thing, no problem'. Or something close to that.

I shuffled through my fellow Gryffindors without drawing attention to myself—I had developed enough foresight to always sit in the back where any abrupt entrances or exits would seldom ever be noticed. At Beauxbatons, I had always been good at being ignored and I was slightly disheartened to see that trait be carried over to Hogwarts, too.

Last week's snowfall made funny crunching noise under my trainers when I stepped off the bleachers. I couldn't help but focus my ears on the ground as I took each step, listening to the muffled noise of my boots and the snow. Left foot (_crunch)_, right foot _(crunch)_, left _(crunch)_, right _(crunch)_, left _(crunch)_, right _(crunch)_…

We had one month before the championship game, I thought grimly. And we would either play Slytherin in the Championship if Ravenclaw won this match. Or if Hufflepuff won, they would play Slytherin and the winner would go the Championship and we would play Ravenclaw and one of us would play the previous winner.

Earlier that day, just before the match, Sirius had pulled the whole team aside.

"If James won't come to practices after we see who wins today," he started, "We're going to have to bring in a reserve chaser."

Everybody groaned.

"Oy, don't blame _me,"_ Sirius huffed. "Go take it up with the tosser if you feel the need to complain."

But nobody did (of course).

I had barely trooped past the first set of bleachers before catching a vague movement out of the corner of my eye. I was surprised when I was in the middle of hustling by the stands that I saw James, kicking stones at the support pillars underneath. Slowing down to an eventual stop, I looked at him for a moment, bracing myself. This was the moment of truth. I waited for him to turn around but he either didn't see me or didn't want to talk to me, so I swallowed real hard. "James?" I said quietly.

He grunted, kicking a pebble at the wood. "What do _you _want?"

"Nothing," I said, fidgeting with my fingers, "I just…saw you down here and wondered what you were up to,"

James looked up at me with a brooding stare, "What does it _look _like I'm doing?"

I pursed my lips. "Sulking." This was the first time in _weeks_ that he didn't run at the sight of me and he was being difficult. Naturally. I marched over towards him a little proudly, leaned against one of the wooden support beams and crossed my arms. "And you're being stupid," I told him flatly.

He rolled his head in my direction. "Is that why you came over?" he said unpleasantly, "To tell me I'm stupid?"

I cringed and dropped my arms in favour of shoving my hands into my pockets. "No…?" I said unsurely.

James regarded me over his glasses with two raised eyebrows.

"Well, you're _acting_ stupid," I admitted. "And I'm not going to apologise to you again, no matter how much you think I should."

James lack of response made it difficult for me to find something to say.

"And the team thinks you should come back to practice." I went on, determinedly.

Silence.

"They really miss you."

Nothing.

"Sirius swallowed the cap to his water bottle again." I threw in. And _maybe _that merited a slight pull at the corner of his mouth.

"We won't be able to play in the next match if you don't—"

"God—could you stop talking about Quidditch for just _one_ second?" he erupted suddenly. At least it was some kind of reaction. I closed my mouth and bit the inside of my cheeks hard. "It's just a game!" he went on. "It's just a stupid, _stupid _game!" he angrily threw a poor stone at the bleachers.

I glared. "It's _not _just a…" I started and then stopped suddenly. James was right. He was absolutely right. He realised how stupid it was to make sacrifices and give up something—or someone, I thought with a grimace—that made him happy. Quidditch was a game. A sport. A pastime. A something-to-do-when-you're-bored. There were priorities in life, and I had completely reconfigured mine.

Despite the inner workings of my mind, I said, "That's not what you're angry about. You're angry because I _lied _to you, earned your trust, and then shoved it back in your face—"

"I'm pissed because you _knew _how I felt—"

"About what?" I cut across. "About—about how being dumped hurt and the fact that I called you on it?"

"No," he gritted.

"Or how I knew all about _sacrificing _something you cared about in order to keep playing Quidditch?"

"No!" he said again.

"Then _what,_ James?" I snapped.

"About _you!"_

"ME?" I said, startled.

"Yes, you_—Lily _you." He added quickly, frustrated. "I've all but poured my freaking heart into your lap since Christmas when you said you knew her—you." He corrected himself automatically. James let out a gusty self-depreciating sigh and squatted himself into the dirt, not looking directly at me. "I told you _things._"

I stared at him silently, not comprehending for a moment as he stared at the ground moodily. Wordlessly, I sat next to him about a foot away. Being the emotional coward that I was, I completely ignored his almost-ish-kinda-sorta confession. "You're right, James…it _is _just a game," I said eventually in a quiet tone, "And everything else that's going on…it's real life. And that's infinitely more important." He didn't say anything so I continued, "Like running away to France for an evening and getting stuck in some chocolate shop!" I said brightly, "_Or _spending four days a week on the Quidditch pitch with your teammates. And having awesome post-Christmas parties at your house—oh," I stopped suddenly, remembering, "You're mum knows about me, by the way,"

James was startled enough to accidentally rock back off the balls of his feet and flop on the ground. "_What?"_ He said, finally looking up at me, "How the hell does _she _know?"

I shrugged. At least this was a nice way to completely derail our previous argument. We could approach that verboten topic later. It was a lot like that saying: 'Procrastinator's unite! Tomorrow.' Or something like that anyway. "She knew my uncle and she knew that I hadn't technically arrived at your house. I don't know _how _she knew but…" I scrunched my face a bit, thinking, "She was pretty cool about it, actually."

"Well it explains why she suddenly started asking about you in her letters," he said dryly.

"She's been asking about me?" I grinned, delighted, "What'd she say?"

"I dunno," he shrugged, "Just…stuff."

"_Stuff?_" I repeated.

"Well I can't think of anything specific off the top my head," he defended, "Why don't _you _just write her?"

"Because she's not _my _mum," I rolled my eyes. More to myself, I added, "_My _mum never wore a _toe ring_,"

James rolled his eyes, a funny little tug pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"Are you and your mum close?" I asked him, leaning back on my hands.

"A bit, I guess." He shrugged. "I usually talk to her instead of my dad when it comes to most things. What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Are you and your mum close?"

"Oh. Um. No." I blinked. James looked at me weirdly and I figured that I should clarify my answer a bit. "Well…er, she died a year and a half ago when we were on holiday…but we were never really close. Not like she was with my sister anyway." I shrugged a little indifferently, "My parents had been talking about a divorce at the time anyway."

"You mentioned something about that a couple weeks ago," he said quietly. "About your parents…"

I laughed so it didn't seem like I really cared, "Yeah well, I…" I swallowed and tried again, "You were…" no, that sounded like I was blaming him. Damn, I hated this. "I wasn't about to gush my whole life's story to a bunch of stupid boys!" I settled on at last.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"Yeah well, you're mum wears a toe ring!" I threw at him.

James gave me his most incredulous look. "I don't even know how I'm supposed to _respond _to that."

"Hmph."

"I'm not even sure if that made _sense, _given the context," his bewildered tone was endearing.

"I don't always have to make sense," I told him, "That's a privilege that comes with being a girl," James didn't respond and we were both staring in different directions. I looked at him apprehensively, "Are you still angry?"

His almost-sorta-maybe-coulda been grin disappeared. "Yeah," he admitted, looking re-determined as I reminded him of his previous feelings. My head dropped. "I'm still angry. _Everybody _lied to me," he said again.

"Don't be upset with the team," I pleaded, "I told them not to tell you,"

He stayed silent.

"Don't be angry with them," I said again more quietly, speaking more towards my knees, "Don't take it out on everyone else for something stupid I did."

"Ridiculous stupid," he quipped unhappily.

"_Obscenely _stupid," I agreed.

"_Embarrassingly _st—" he was about to go on.

"Please play, James," I whispered, succeeding in cutting him off before I got too annoyed with the direction the conversation was headed. "_Please._" I stared at him imploringly for a long time and I refused to look away until I had an answer.

Eventually, James sighed deeply as he stared at the ground in front of him. "Fine, I'll play," he groused.

My whole demeanour immediately and swiftly changed and I sat up straight and grinned triumphantly to myself.

"But I won't like it," he made sure to add quickly, looking at me.

"Whatever you say, James." I patted him dismissively on the back in a very feminine way.

James rolled his eyes and shoved me lightly with his shoulder, "You're so queer, Evans,"

I guffawed a little loudly, "Well, if that's a jibe at my sexuality then it's pretty lame since I have no problem freely admitting my preference to men."

James chuckled a little, too. "I guess you're right,"

"Quidditch players specifically," I think this was the closest I'd ever come to intentionally flirting.

"Is that so?" he played along.

I insisted, "Oh yes," I pretended to think, "Tall, dark and handsome, I suppose,"

"So Sirius, then?"

I slugged him lightly in the shoulder. "Arsehole,"

He pretended to be wounded and gripped his arm tightly, "You're killing me, Evans," he teased.

I rolled my eyes but didn't stop smiling.

We were silent for a minute and we listened to the commentary on the game that was going on right above us. After a shorter bit of time, I looked at him a little sheepishly, "You can call me Lily, you know," I said seriously, "Since you _know_, I mean," I nudged his shoulder a little.

He seemed to deliberate on the thought for a while. "Lily," he said slowly, not knowing how my heart sputtered, "About last December…at my house,"

I blushed, trying to keep a neutral face. "Um, yes?"

He stayed silent for an uncomfortably long time. "Well I just uh…wanted you to, er, know that I was—I wasn't _really_…present of mind?"

I blinked at him, nonplussed. "You're claming that was a momentary lapse of sanity?"

James politely ignored me, "I wasn't really _thinking _clearly." He rephrased.

I felt like a balloon that somebody had just let all the air out of. I blinked at him incredulously. "Sooo, you're taking _it _back?" Could he even _do _that?

"No," he said quickly, "I just wanted you to know that Sirius had given me three straight shots of firewhiskey that same half hour."

"Oh?"

"So I was a little…impulsive."

I grinned crookedly, despite myself. He SO kissed me. _On purpose._

"And it's just that right now," he hesitated, "you're Li Evans; _male_ Gryffindor Quidditch player. Or at least, that's how everyone sees you."

I nodded along, waiting for him to tell me something I didn't know.

Carefully, he went on, "But I guess in the summer, you know, you're…Lily."

"I am _always_ Lily," I said a little forcefully.

"But you don't _look—_" James sighed agitatedly into his palms, "This is so _unethical,_ what you're doing," he said, "and it makes it really difficult to think about getting into a relationship."

"Wait—_what?"_ My heart nearly exploded. After another split second to register what he was saying, I started, "Are you saying that you want to…be with me?"

His face was turning bright red, much to my delight. "Well, not right _now,"_ he said quickly, gesturing to my cross-dressing garb. "That would raise too many uncomfortable questions."

"Yeah," I said, a little deflated, "I see what you mean,"

He looked visibly relieved, but swallowed with difficulty, "But…when summer comes around, you know where I live, right?" I nodded, trying to conceal my grin as he went on, "And then maybe we could work something out for next _oomph_—_!_"

I couldn't help it. My mouth had split open into a maddening smile and out flew a string of laughter that I could no longer contain. The physical urge I had to throw my arms around him had become too strong and I when he had shrugged with his shoulders, looking so awkward and insecure I couldn't help but hug him. We flew back into the dirt, very similar to the way we had on the path not too long ago when I had told him nearly everything, but this time we were both smiling.

"Thank you, James," I mumbled into his robe.

"Whatever," he tried to sound indifferent and aloof, but I kept holding onto him and eventually he hugged me back.

"Let's go eat," I said suddenly, pulling back. Everyone had already emptied from the stands and was making their way to the Great Hall. "I'm starving and we have to celebrate Hufflepuff's victory."

"It's a shame that Ravenclaw lost," said James as he stood, "I would've liked one more game to decide if we were going to play for the Cup,"

I stood too. "I'm sure Nigel's disappointed."

"Somehow I doubt that," he answered wryly. James looked at my confused face before he motioned to the giggling and tittering couple that was Nigel and Jo. They were hanging all over each other on their way to the castle, clearly not expecting anyone to be watching them. They looked so in love and staring at the both of them as they shared a quick kiss was awkward with James standing right next to me.

"So," I said.

"So…" he said slowly.

"Food?" I asked.

"Good idea."

I made a move to instinctively loop my hand through his elbow before I forced my arm back down. Not yet, I told myself. Not_ yet!_

We walked silently up the path side-by-side thinking about what would be served for dinner tonight. I would be, as usual, completely surrounded in every possible way by the Quidditch team during the meal. They were all a little paranoid about someone noticing who I really was and thus resulting in my not playing for the Cup. But they're concern for my well-being was touching, really!

Everything was finally back to normality. Well, whatever kind of normality we had established before. Sort of.

Wordlessly, we joined everyone in the Great Hall where the noise volume was up a couple of notches due to the previous match. The team was staring with forks frozen half poised to their mouths as they watched us sit down in the middle of everyone. I started to pile food on my plate and James filled both of our goblets with pumpkin juice.

Sirius cleared his throat. "So you and Prongs are…all right, then?" he asked slowly as if not daring to hope.

"Wouldn't _you _like to know?" I said vaguely.

He twitched, "Well as _team captain—"_

I snorted as he pulled the captain card. "I'm _kidding_, Sirius. We're fine now,"

Sirius looked like he was about to open his mouth to say something but Joe cut him off.

"Oy, quit hogging the yams, Evans,"

"Make me, Daniels," I countered seriously as I plopped another extra-large helping onto my plate.

Joe scrunched up his face. "_Make me, Dan—,"_ he began to mimic in a high-pitched voice before I flicked a large morsel of yam at his face.

Joe sputtered and the team and I grinned.

Everything was back to the way it used to be. I smiled more broadly to myself. We would be competing for the Cup in just a matter of weeks and then I would be able to go home for the summer and resume my natural identity. My smile threatened to take over my whole face and I let out a tiny giggle. My chest was tight with emotion and my heart was hammering with hope.

This is had to be a natural high.

And I was nearly high as kite just then. Joe and Jordan were throwing pieces of their meal at each other and Sirius was trying to use half of Gryffindor's salt and pepper shakers to demonstrate Quidditch plays on the table. Maud was, as usual, blinking openly at my chest and Victor was trying to fit a fourth layer of meat into his sandwich. James was sitting next to me, taking this all in with amusement and sending me a smile.

Everything was wonderful.

And then out of nowhere, in the doorway to the Great Hall suddenly stood Charlie skidding to a halt. She seemed to be searching for something. My stomach dropped, my heart stopped and my kite crashed; it could only mean trouble.

Leaning across the table so that I was practically laying on it, I pretend-whispered, "_Charlie?"_

Her head snapped over to the Gryffindor table. In a blink of an eye, she had leapt over the Hufflepuff table and practically collapsed on me, breathless and red in the face.

I felt my heart stop when I heard her next few words spoken in French.

"_They know,"_

I didn't have to say "know what?"

"_Wh-who knows?" _I said.

"_The professors!" _she was in hysterics, I realised. _"Lily," _she said, _"I am _so, so, so_ sorry! Me and the girls were talking about you and this ghost—what English ghost speaks French anyways?!—overheard and she said that she had a friend up at Hogwarts and we tried to stop her! But we saw her enter the castle grounds and then we had to sneak past the mean caretaker and we split up to find you a-and," _she said this all in one very lengthy breath... _"Lily! They professors know who you are!"_

My heart stopped and my voice caught in my throat.

BREATHE, LILY, BREATHE.

I glanced up at the head table where I saw several empty chairs. I craned my neck and saw that Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore as well as several more teachers were having a heated debate behind the table. After a moment of shock I leaned in the table and motioned the team closer. They practically dove over the table to listen to me in a huddle.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Lather, rinse, repeat. Good.

"Evans, what's going on?"

Inhale.

"—_I overheard the professor with the glasses talking about your family and I heard her say 'Lily'—"_

Exhale.

"Is everything okay?"

Inhale.

"Is she still available?"

Oh, for the love of…

Exhale.

"Evans, why—?"

I didn't have much time. The teachers would be noticing Charlie at any moment. And I was still having my whole "Inhale/Exhale" dilemma. James clamped his hand on my one shoulder and held it tightly. "_Lily,"_ He had heard what she said.

"Listen," I said hoarsely, cutting off James and everyone's questions, "The professors know,"

"Know what?" Victor asked through a mouthful of turkey.

I glared.

His eyes widened and he spit his food back onto his plate, "They know _that?"_

"WHAT?" was the communal response.

Charlie was muttering something under her breath in French, shifting from foot to foot guiltily. The team was murmuring all at once but all I could hear was incessant buzzing as a whole.

"What do we do?" Sirius whispered, his voice, well, _serious,_ "The match is just a month away! They can't pull you out _now! _We'd have no time to host another tryout and train another chaser! We just got James back like, two minutes ago!"

"I-I don't know," I mumbled, hugging my arms.

The team was murmuring amongst each other and I could tell that we were attracting some attention from the other Gryffindors and house tables.

I felt my blood run cold when Albus Dumbledore, the most powerful sorcerer on earth, called my name...

"Mr. Evans," his voice boomed form the podium, "May we have a word?" The Hall erupted into curious murmurs.

I froze. Luckily, Charlie was there to shake me out of my reverie.

"_Shit—run!"_ She said.

Run? Run from a room staffed with powerful wizards and witches? Was she _kidding?_ That was quite possibly the most ridiculous thing I had ever heard! Well, give or take a couple of things concerning my current predicament…How on earth could I run—? But Charlie didn't give me a split second to think of another option; she grabbed my wrist, yanked me away from James, and dragged me out of the hall at top speed. No one tried to stop us, not even the team. I looked back to see that the players had leapt into action to stop anyone from coming after me, for which I was grateful. Yet I doubted that they would try to stop the professors. I tried to get a glimpse of James before I was out the door, but we turned the corner too quickly.

My mind felt numb. It didn't even process that I had run away from the most _powerful _sorcerer on earth and away from the most prestigious school in all of Europe, even if it was named after a pig's disease. I didn't know where Charlie was taking me and I didn't know if it would be better than the fate that I would have faced back in the Great Hall. Eventually, by the time we had reached the gates that lead to the world off the grounds, Charlie had dropped my wrist and I continued to follow her.

"_Where are we going?"_ I asked in French. For some reason it came more difficult to me than it used to.

"_I don't know,_" she shook her head, _"We'll wait for the girls to catch up. They'll be able to figure out what happened,"_

We slowed our pace to a brisk walk once we reached the edge of the forest, the castle still barely in sight. I could see the lights of the Great Hall illuminating the windows.

"I am...so, _so _sorry, Lily," Charlie said.

I shrugged, sighing deeply as I dug my fists into my pockets and attempted to play it off as no big deal, "It's okay," I told her, "It was bound to happen eventually," In a way, I was kind of relieved. It was like the sense of imminent doom had finally disappeared.

She nodded, but I could tell that she was still mentally berating herself.

"Do you think there's something in the rulebooks about what I did?" I asked amusedly, hoping to take her mind off the matter, "I don't think the school governors ever had to worry about cross dressers…" I chuckled.

Charlie shrugged her shoulders, much like I had, "Did you read the rulebook?"

Actually, I hadn't. I had read all of the schoolbooks and even some extra on my own time...but not the _damn rulebook._ I should have known to look for a loophole that I could use in my defence if something like this occurred.

I shook my head no.

"You can...hide out in our dorm at Beauxbatons," she suggested.

Did I really have a choice? I couldn't go back to Hogwarts, not even to get my stuff. Not even for Quidditch. I _would not _go back to my uncle's because it was entirely his bloody fault that I was in this mess…I would make him sweat for a bit, I decided. So what else could I do?

I sighed audibly.

"Come on, _chere,"_ Charlie sighed, stopping, "Let's take the roundabout way to Hogsmead and we'll floo from there,"

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N:**

Was that..? Was that another _cliffhanger? _*is befuddled* and from LUNA as well?? _Mon Dieu! _The world is ending!

James' reaction was the hardest to get out, I think. But I greatly enjoyed their conversation under the bleachers during the game. And Lily and Victor's boob conversation.

**Next Chapter includes drag queens! x)**

**On a different note, I met Robert Pattinson the other week. He was really sweet :)**

**Merry Boxing Day!**


	18. What a Drag

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **5 September 2009  
**Chapter 18  
****"What a Drag"**

**:-:**

Back when my parents were alive, we used to spend every Christmas in Paris. And during our stay in _l'Ile de France,_ we would usually wander around Versailles. Inside, they've set up something like a tour where we can see the ballrooms, the hall of mirrors, and the luscious courtyards. It was an expansive building that had once housed the thousands of nobles during the reign of Louis XIV.

Beauxbatons always made me think of Versailles in the same sense of structure, romance, and content. It was very posh and traditional with beautiful gardens that surrounded the entire school. Sometimes, when the weather permitted it, the professors would move their lectures outside for the day so the students could enjoy the fortunate climate.

It was a long trip back to my first alma mater. We ended up not waiting for Ana or Cheryl because it was growing dark too rapidly for either of our liking. After dealing with flooing to Diagon Alley, and then finding the cheapest and closest international flooing station, we arrived in Paris with practically empty wallets. There, we took a series of complicated metro rides to get to the one that would take us to Emil, the closest wizarding town just outside the school.

One of us _really _needed to get our apparating license...

It was so strange seeing my old classmates wandering around on their day off. It was even later in the evening and everyone seemed to be simultaneously gathering their things and preparing to return to the school. The trees that were carefully grown and maintained on the sidewalks were trimmed and covered in white and pink flowers. The weather was warmer and more humid that it had been at Hogwarts, more like summer. It was about this moment when I realised how much I had missed my home.

"_Alo, Lily!_" an old classmate waved to me and I was pulled out of my reminiscent reverie.

"_Que-est ce que tu fait ici?"_ What're you doing back? Another asked.

"_Eh-oo! C'est Lily!_" Hey! It's Lily!

"_Oh, I love your haircut!_"

"_Are you transferring back?_"

And on and on it went as we approached the school, with Charlie telling everyone to shut up because my being back was a secret and the headmistress couldn't know. I was secretly flattered that so many old classmates recognised me so quickly. At the same time I was wondering about what I was going to do when the girls went to their classes the following day.

As big of a hole it put in my heart, I smiled at my old friends and classmates and I refused to think about my teammates.

Beauxbatons doesn't have many secret passageways, only emergency tunnels that hadn't been used since World War II. However, since no one actually _knew_ where they were, (we would be screwed if Beauxbatons actually ever _was_ attacked), all Charlie had to do was distract the old crone of a gatekeeper/overpaid secretary in the front hall by the entrance doors so I could duck past them and run down a hallway that would eventually lead me to the dormitories.

The rooms were just as I remembered them to be; two doubles joined together by a shared bathroom. Charlie had her own room now since I had transferred and Ana and Cheryl I assumed still roomed together. Both rooms' walls' were pale purple with thin white window drapes that were overlapped by heavier plum coloured cloths. The floor was shiny and cedar with matching bureaus and desks and there was a full length rotating mirror that was carefully angled in the corner. It was probably the most used instrument in the whole room, I thought a little wryly.

Charlie popped in minutes later, shrugging off her sweater. As she wordlessly conjured up a small cot for me to sleep on with a pillow and blanket, I began to clear away any lingering charms I had used near my face to make it more masculine looking and cast a quick growth charm over my hair. I was truly Lily once again.

"I'm going to write my father in the morning and see if he can help us out." Charlie announced. Her father was a wizard lawyer in the French government and quite possibly, I realised, could be a powerful advocate. He could put together a case with the school governors. "Did you want to go flying together tomorrow?"

I tore my gaze away from my reflection in the mirror and was able to force out a small smile.

"Sure, that'd be fun." But for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to be that excited.

Charlie offered an exhausted smile and tossed me a pair of extra pyjamas before turning back to the dresser to pull out her own.

"_Whooore."_

"Excuse me?" Charlie whirled back around bewilderedly to face me.

"What? That wasn't _me—_"

_"Whooooore?"_ Something tapped on the glass outside.

"Chudley!" I gasped, running to the window to let him in. Chudley hooted happily and started picking at the parchment on the desk, as if asking I had any mail to send today.

Charlie looked at the bird dubiously. "_This_ is the owl your uncle sent you?"

I was so happy to see a familiar face that I almost missed the displeasure in her voice. I laughed, "Yeah, I only just got him a couple months ago. I've used him to send you letters, remember?"

"Well yeah," she said dryly, "But he's never called me a _whore_ before."

Chudley was still picking at the papers on the table when I thought struck me. "I really should tell someone where I am."

"Like who? John?"

I hadn't even thought of John. "Um....actually..." I didn't need to finish before Charlie rolled her eyes at me. Mercifully, she didn't say anything.

I grabbed a random quill and piece of slightly worn parchment and scribbled out a quick message, _praying_ that the note would reach its intended receiver in time...

* * *

Professor McGonagall stood stiffly next to Professor Dumbledore's desk in his office, staring down her nose at the uncomfortable-looking Gryffindor Quidditch team in front of her. She removed her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose tiredly. A quick glance at the clock told her that it was nearing midnight. It had taken the professors quite some time to get the Gryffindor table settled down and locate all of the students once they had all started running around (Sirius's loud proclamation that there was free Honeydukes chocolate hidden all around the fourth floor had _not_ been well received by the professors) and _then_ try to wrangle the entire Quidditch team together after they had panicked and scattered.

"So to clarify everything, just in case I am mistaken, which I could only _wish _were the case," the team shuffled, "_Lily_ Evans entered this school under the name _Li_ Evans last September in order to try out for one of the Houses' Quidditch teams. She has been living in the _boys' dormitory_ for the past seven months and _none _of you knew absolutely _anything at all?"_

The boys mumbled out their _no_'s.

"And none of you have _any_ idea where _Miss _Evans could have gone?"

"No," the team muttered. They had plenty of ideas where Lily could have gone.

"Or who those girls were running around the school?"

"No," they lied again.

"So _why_ were you speaking with them?"

Silence.

Professor McGonagall sighed; clearly not thrilled with the lack of response she was receiving from the normally talkative boys. They had stopped nosy students from pursuing _Lily_ Evans and that purple-haired woman and half of them even tried to stand between the professors and the group of foreigners that soon entered the hall while the other half tried conversing with them.

"Gentlemen," Professor Dumbledore, who had quietly been sitting in the desk in front of them, finally spoke. "I admire your loyalty to Miss Evans, but I'm sure you are aware of the possibility that she could very well be in danger at this moment."

"Danger?" Jordan repeated slowly.

The team hadn't really considered this.

Dumbledore nodded gravely, "Yes, Mr. McClain. I can no longer guarantee Miss Evans safety if she is not on the Hogwarts grounds."

The team exchanged uncertain glances amongst themselves. The parchment clenched in James' hand crinkled slightly as he gripped it tighter.

"So I'll ask you once again, gentlemen," Professor McGonagall said in a tone that was not meant for trifling, "Do you have any idea where Miss Evans could have gone?"

Jordan bit his lip. McGonagall saw his wavering certainty and zoned in on the team's youngest member.

"Mr. McClain?"

The team was staring down at him, most of them uncertain as he was, and he opened his mouth to respond. However, when Jordan glanced over to James, his teammate moved his head an inch or so to the side as if to silently shake his head and say no. Jordan quickly snapped his mouth shut and shrugged.

Professor McGonagall pursed her lips and was about to reconvene her interrogation when there was a knock at the door.

"Come in," Professor Dumbledore said, not looking away from the team.

The door opened to reveal a smiling Professor Slughorn. "Good evening, everyone," he said, taking no note of the serious atmosphere in the room as he closed the door behind him.

McGonagall was not in the mood to deal with this professor. "Horace, I hope you understand that we are dealing with a very serious matter here."

"What? Oh yes," he said as he held something up. To the team, it looked like a black rectangle. "I thought I would help. Even if I _am_ the head of Slytherin, I've got a friend or two in Gryffindor." He winked at James and Sirius who offered back slightly warped smiles.

Professor McGonagall took the black rectangle from Slughorn and stared at it for only a second. "Horace, what is this?" She held it up, revealing the other side to actually be a picture frame. The image was of an indiscernible person riding a broomstick.

"Don't you remember him? He's our old student, Minerva," Slughorn said obviously, "A Mr. Johnathan _Evans_."

The team exchanged looks again.

* * *

Cheryl and Ana returned a little after midnight. They entered our side of the dormitory through the bathroom, red-faced and unhappy.

_"You could have at least sent us a quick owl to let us know you were leaving so quickly,"_ Ana glared as she threw her day bag on the floor.

Charlie rolled her eyes. "_Oh, je m'excuse, it was only an emergency_."

"_We were _worried," said Cheryl, pissed, "_And were practically accosted by those stupid Quidditch players when they saw us!"_

My heart constricted and I sat up a little straighter.

"_What did they say?"_ I asked.

Cheryl scoffed; her opinion on my teammates having apparently changed since the last time she'd seen them several months ago. She had been so excited to meet them...

_"I don't know!"_ she snapped._ "They were all talking at once and we could barely understand a quarter of what they were saying until that Remus Lupin started translating!" _I cringed. They're English really wasn't spectacular... _"They wanted to know where you had gone and Ana and I had _no idea_ what had happened once Charlie had gone off on her own so we just looked stupid to them!"_

_"Did any of the teachers see you?" _I wanted to know, ignoring Cheryl's snide tone.

_"_See_ us?"_ Ana snipped at me. _"They started to put the school on _lockdown _because they couldn't understand why there were so many foreign strangers running around the school and abducting their students!"_ She glared at Charlie.

I blanched. Suddenly running off with Charlie was beginning to look like a really dumb idea.

"_Well they would have expelled her anyways!"_ Charlie snapped defensively at Ana.

_"She should have stayed and talked to the professors!"_ She shot back angrily.

While they continued to argue without my input, the night's adrenaline finally began to wear off. I was now considering details that I should have thought of hours ago. What about all my things back in the dorm? My Cleansweep Seven that I got for Christmas! My friends! My appendix-in-a-jar on my nightstand! Had somebody already contacted John? Was he in trouble? Would somebody file a missing persons report?

Oh my god. I was going to be tomorrow's headlines.

_International Cross-Dressing Kidnapping Incident Stirs Curiosity._

Holy Merlin. Running off really _was _a stupid idea.

_"—Not to mention that we both now have a week's worth of detention because we checked back in so late—!"_

_"Guys!" _I shouted suddenly._ "Just knock it off already! We can't—"_

There was a knock at the door and all conversation in the room halted.

"Was that…?" I whispered to Charlie.

She sneered, not at any of us, but at the door. After some frantic hand gestures and wordless whispering, Cheryl and I were both shoved into the bathroom just as the person knocked again.

"Coming!" shouted Charlie, silently shutting the bathroom door with me and Cheryl on the other side.

The two of us stood motionless, listening to Ana noisily leap on the cot that Charlie had conjured for me as the door to the hallway was opened.

"_Yes?" _said Charlie.

_"I heard a…_commotion_ coming from this room, Charlotte."_ Said a deep and feminine voice that was about as slick as the sharp end of a knife. Her name was _Madame Scapin_ and she was my old dormitory monitor.

I could practically _feel _Charlie bristle.

"_Sorry,"_ she said unapologetically, _"I tried enchanting one of my books to read to us before we went to sleep."_

_"I see,"_ she was probably smiling patronizingly at her, not even sparing a glance at Ana. She had _always _hated me and Charlie the most. _"And I assume you were unsuccessful and resorted to shouting out loud instead?"_

Charlie said nothing.

_"I suppose I'll have to inform Professor LeBarge that you require extra assistance in your charms lessons."_ There was a pause, as if she were silently daring one of them say otherwise. _"I see you are having a little sleepover, hm?_

Cheryl and I couldn't hear any response so we silently assumed that they had only nodded in affirmation.

"_I would consider it unwise to be up so late when you have classes in a couple hours._"

"_We were just about to turn in, Madame,"_ chimed Ana.

I imagined Madame Scapin smiling thinly at them.

_"Of course. I'm sure you both are worn out from your weekend."_

_"Yeah," _Charlie cut off impatiently, _"We're both really tired."_

"_I see," _there was a pause in which all I could here was Ana shift on the cot, _"Let's keep the noise down, okay ladies?"_

"_Okay_…" I heard Ana say quietly.

I thought Madame Scapin was about to leave, but she then added, _"And you can join Miss Hergue and Miss LeCroix in detention all this week for disturbing your classmates in the other rooms. Perhaps I should have you help Madame Verte prune all the nocturnal plants in the greenhouse since you seem to be so _continuously_ fond of staying up so late."_

Charlie didn't answer right away, but I could assume that she was forcing her face to keep neutral.

"_I _look forward_ to it," _she said spitefully.

Madame Scapin said nothing else, but even when we heard the door shut, Cheryl and I didn't move from the bathroom. A minute or so later, when we were all sure that she was gone for good, Charlie opened the door and motioned us back into her room.

"She's still _here?"_ I gasped quietly.

Charlie scoffed bitterly, "Don't remind me."

I tried not to imagine what Madame Scapin would do if she ever discovered I was hiding in Charlie's dormitory. I knew just how heartless and unsympathetic she could really be.

After all, she had been the one to carelessly inform me last year that my parents had been killed.

* * *

"Whassit _say,_ Prongs?" Sirius hissed, trying to pry the letter out of his best friend's hand.

"It says _piss off, Padfoot!_" James snapped back.

"What? Is it some kind of raunchy love letter?" Joe asked.

James reddened angrily (and embarrassedly), "_No_, it's just a letter."

The entire team had immediately returned to the Marauder's dorm once they had been dismissed by McGonagall. Everyone had been bursting with curiosity ever since an exhausted Chudley had intercepted James on they were on their way to Dumbledore's office only an hour before.

"Is Lily okay?" Jordan asked with his wide and innocent eyes.

James looked at him warily. Damn. No wonder Lily always caved when it came to their youngest teammate.

James sighed, unfolded the letter and began to read aloud, "_Dear James—"_

Sirius interrupted, miffed, "Oi! What about the rest of us?"

Remus shushed him and James began again...

_Dear James,_

_Don't worry, Charlie and I are fine. I'm staying at Beauxbatons until Charlie can get a hold of her father so he can put a case together to present to the school's governors on my behalf._

_I hope to see everyone soon and I'll contact you when something happens._

_—Lily_

"That's it?" Sirius said, deflated.

"We know that she's _safe_, Padfoot," James replied seriously.

"Should we write her back?" Maud thought aloud.

"She said she'd contact _us._" Victor said.

Remus swore uncharacteristically and the team couldn't help but snap their heads in his direction, "We're going to have to bring in the reserve chaser," he stated grimly.

The team immediately broke out in protest.

"Do we even _have_ a reserve chaser?" Victor asked.

Sirius groaned, "No. I didn't think we'd ever end up needing one."

James stared at the parchment in his hands, running his thumb over a wrinkle.

Sirius looked at him, guiltily, before staring at the floor and stating, "The match is in a month."

There only seemed to be one feeling present that was shared among the players.

Dread.

* * *

I awoke the next morning to Charlie tripping and swearing quietly.

"Errrghh...where you goin'...?" I slurred, sitting.

"Class," Charlie said, stumbling into her second shoe.

"Wha...?"

"Class," she said again, "It's Monday, remember?" Charlie then motioned to the desk by the window, "I brought you up some breakfast and the girls and I will come up around twelve when it's time for lunch. I've got some books under my bed if you get bored. Oh, and I've already written out the letter to Dad," she held up a rather short letter addressed to her father, "and I'll mail it as soon as I go down, okay?" And then she was out the door just as my head was hitting the pillow again.

The following two days passed in a similar fashion. I would hide out in Charlie's room for the day and then after curfew we would do some activity for about an hour. Flying, usually, but I had difficulty using the school's older models (especially since nearly half of them were designed to be ridden sideways. Straddling a broom was considered "manly"). While the girls were in class, I would read whatever books they left behind and, if I got REALLY bored, their homework.

It was day four of my abrupt departure and Charlie's father hadn't replied, which I thought was a bit ridiculous since he almost certainly received the owl. With as chipper as Chudley had been when he returned, I assumed that he had been able to get to James—er, _Hogwarts_, that is—in a matter of hours!

I was waiting a little impatiently for Charlie to come out of the bathroom she had been hogging for over an hour.

"Charlie! I've got to _go,_" I said insistently.

I heard her huff.

"Quit hounding me!"

I glared at the wood standing between us, "If you don't open the door right now, _Charlotte—_"

The door flew open to reveal an annoyed-looking best friend.

She glared at me, "I've _told _you _not _to call me—

"Charlie!" I gasped, ignoring her, "You dyed your hair back!"

Temporarily forgetting her anger, Charlie fingered the curling blonde hair at her shoulders, "Yeah," she said awkwardly, "I was getting tired of radioactive-plum-purple."

"I like it better this way,"

"I know," she smiled casually, "It's pretty bitchin', right?"

"Way _bitchin'_." I agreed, grinning.

After a moment of silence in which we let the good mood between us to slide, Charlie crawled on the bed next to me and wrapped her arms around my shoulders in a tight hug. We stayed silent for a moment, not really knowing what else to say. I guess it was sort of our way of apologising.

"Are you doing okay?" she murmured quietly.

I sighed. "I'm getting there." I turned towards her a little. "I just really miss the team." Especially James. "I had...gotten into this big fight with one of the other chasers and we'd only just recently made up."

"Yeah?" said Charlie. "You liked him?"

I shrugged indifferently, "A bit."

"Potter, right?" she guessed. "Mr. Let's-run-off-to-France-together but doesn't know how to treat a girl in a dark room surrounded by chocolate?"

I couldn't help but laugh because I remembered telling him almost exactly the same thing months ago. I shoved her playfully.

"Maybe," I said.

"Well good," said Charlie in a new tone as she let go of me and leapt off the bed again. "So let's go out tonight and hit some discotheques down in Emil and bitch about it!" She struck a pose and I was suddenly made aware of her short skirt, low-dipping halter top and high heels.

_"Noooo,"_ I groaned and collapsed on the bed, "Charlie, don't you remember what happened last time we did that?"

"So what?" she said defensively, "It's not like he remembers what we look like or anything!"

I whined, "But I don't want to have to hide in Monsieur Peppinot's barn if we get chased by the muggle police! Again!"

Charlie only rolled her eyes.

"That was _one_ time!"

"One too many! And we _told_ you Ana looked too much like a hooker!"

"What happened to your sense of adventure?" she asked incredulously, "Do we have to turn you into a boy in order to have any kind of fun with you?"

I sat up so I could glare fiercely, but Charlie was unhindered.

"We've already set it up with Jean-Paul and said it was your birthday—"

"It's not my birthday!" I interrupted, "And it's the middle of the week for goodness sake!"

"—so he agreed to put up the karaoke station and the Christmas and strobe lights. Just for you!"

I gaped at her until Ana and Cheryl walked through the bathroom to enter our room. They, too, were all dressed up, albeit a tad more conservatively than my dear Charlie.

Ana eyed me warily, "_I hope you're not wearing that,"_ she said.

"_I'm not going out tonight!"_

Cheryl studied me carefully, "_You could probably fit into my purple silk v-neck,"_

"_And I have another black skirt somewhere in here..."_ Charlie trailed off.

I let out a pitiful whine, "_I don't want to go out tonight,"_

_"But we already told Jean-Paul that you were coming!"_ said Cheryl.

"_And I haven't anywhere to wear these shoes yet!"_ Ana kicked up one foot for me to see. I looked at them and was suddenly insanely jealous.

"_Please?"_ begged Cheryl, _"Just like we used to!"_

Damn them. They were too good.

I grumbled, _"Fine."_

Ana and Cheryl high-fived and Charlie grinned at me saucily. "We'll meet you down there, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah," I said, resigned.

"And don't be too late!" she ushered them out the door.

Beat.

"I won't!"

She rolled her eyes, not believing me. "Two blocks down _Rue d'Appoline_, a left, a right, two more blocks and it's right on the corner, okay?"

"Whatever," I harrumphed as they rushed out the door.

I suddenly remembered that I had needed to pee for the past hour and dashed for the open bathroom.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, I was in a pair jeans and a sweatshirt I found under Charlie's bed, crouching down the hallway. The easiest way to avoid Madame Scapin was to go out to the far end of the hallway and jump out the window (it was only a four foot drop, don't worry) and run through the gardens and the rest of the grounds until you got to the collapsed wall. Then it was just a matter of walking over the broken bricks and then it was about a quarter of a mile walk until you got to the path. I felt like such a spy.

(I even threw in a summersault or two for good measure.)

And Charlie and the girls did this all in heels. Merlin. I would've been willing to take the long way through the front door...

I shoved my hands into my pockets and turned my back on the school. I found the path easily enough and soon I could see the sparkling lights of Emil's night light shining in the distance, beckoning and tempting me, but I couldn't be bothered. I found Rue d'Appoline sans problem and took a right, a left, and walked two more blocks like Charlie had instructed. The building had excessive pink lights and there seemed to be _glitter_ coming out of the doorway. Rolling my eyes, I walked in.

I started to give the place a once over in search of Charlie but ended up closing me eyes, half in horror and half in embarrassment. Oh _Lord_. I couldn't even bring myself to move just then. I opened my eyes, hoping I had seen wrong, but no, the scene was still displayed before me. This was the story of my life, I figured. Painful irony. I should have figured that with all this weird cross-dressing energy I had been sending out into the atmosphere that I would receive the same effect tenfold...

But really, I was too emotionally exhausted to move much further. I found the closest bar stool, plopped by butt down and rested my chin on my hand, sighing deeply. Maybe after a minute or two, a person behind the bar with bright blonde hair pumped and teased to a height I had never thought could be achieved, dark blue eye shadow and a low cut top came over.

"_Bonsoir, ma cherie,"_ Good evening, my dear. "She" smiled at me suggestively.

_"Bonsoir, madame,"_ I replied, unbothered.

She frowned a little. "Are you English?"

Startled, I gave her my full attention. "Wait, you could tell?"

"Only barely," she shrugged, "But then again I've had _a lot _of experience with foreigners," she grinned a little cheekily.

I groaned. Only seven months away from the continent and I had already lost my accent. Great. Just great. I suddenly remembered the day at Platform 9 ¾ when Remus had heard me talking to myself and wandered over to help me out, not even knowing that I spoke English.

"Yeah…" I said, not knowing what else to say really.

"Well can I get you anything, honey?" she offered before her voiced changed and went a level deeper and throatier as she leaned across the bar, a little closer than I was comfortable with. "And I really _do_ mean _anything—_"

"Sorry," I said rather quickly, leaning back, "I actually really _am _a woman." Contrary to what half of Hogwarts thought, I mentally sighed.

The drag queen pulled away for a second, a knowing look on her face. "I thought so," she said smugly. "Only straight people wear muggle sweat clothes to this place." She looked at me with an eyebrow raised. "Straight and depressed people. What brings you to _Chez Giselle_ tonight, hon?"

Chez Giselle. In retrospect, all the glitter, the pink lights and the provocative images on the glass windows out front _really _should have clued me in that I was about to walk straight into a flamboyantly gay, drag queen, transvestite bar. Well, at least I had something in common with all of them; I desperately wanted to be acknowledged as a woman...

I sighed again, and rubbed my head. "I took a wrong turn somewhere and figured, what the heck? Firewhisky is pretty much the same in every bar."

He—er—she? Um…the person behind the bar appraised my moping person for a moment. (Um, just how _does _one choose which pronoun to use when dealing with drag queens?) "Why don't you start off with a Little Wicked before you head for the stiff stuff?" She winked at me.

I blushed. Fortunately, the...person...turned around the make my drink so she couldn't see my fidget. I sat on the stool with an unusual amount of berth between me and everyone else. Another drag queen approached the bar, gave me a once over confusedly, and ordered a drink. Trying desperately not to look at her or anyone else longer than necessary, I determinedly stared at the wood in front of me, wringing my hands in my lap. A set of long and purple manicured nails appeared before me as the blonde behind the bar slid a green drink in a fancy glass in front of me. I must have just been staring at it for longer than I thought because she cleared her throat.

"It might be called a Little Wicked, but it's not poisonous, babe."

I looked up and offered a thin smile, "Sorry. I guess I'm just a little out of it still." I pulled the glass closer to me and took a sip. It went down sweet but left a burning sensation in my mouth that I found to be actually quite pleasant. I gulped down the rest of it and wiped my mouth with my sleeve, fighting the desire to belch loudly as the drink hit my stomach. Oh the lingering effects of my Quidditch team…

"What's your name?" she asked me curiously, taking away my empty glass.

"Lily," I answered, wondering how long it had been since I could answer that question truthfully.

She hmm-ed for a minute as she put together another drink. This time it was bright red and kind of looked like the liquid inside muggle glow-sticks. It smelt heavenly though, and I took it a little eagerly as she slid it over to me.

"_That_ one's called Poison Apple."

I almost choked on the drink.

The drag queen chuckled throatily, "You'll be fine, _cherie, _I just wouldn't ever have more than two of those in one night."

"Oh..." I took a tiny sip this time.

"Do you go to Beauxbatons?" she asked me conversationally.

I thought about how to answer. "Um, no. I'm actually here on holiday."

"Huh," she said thoughtfully, putting on hand on the bar and the other on her hip, "Spring holidays here ended a couple weeks ago."

"Yeah..." I said unintelligently.

She raised an eyebrow at me. "Tell me about yourself, _Lily_," she said.

"Um. I'm sixteen, I go to school in Scotland, I like to read, I play Quidditch..." I searched for more, but that pretty much summed it up...I suddenly felt a little pathetic on the inside.

"Quidditch player?" said another customer down the bar a short while away. She slid over with her drink. _"You play Quidditch?"_ she asked me, intrigued.

Switching to French, I answered, "_Sort of, I mean...it's complicated."_

The bartender furrowed her brow at me, confused. "_Then explain, cherie."_

I sighed, picking at the sugar on my glass.

_"You're going to think I'm stupid,"_

The two exchanged dry looks. The second drag queen had dark skin and bright lipstick and sat on the stool next to me, putting an elbow on the bar and crossing her legs. "_I don't think you realise that you're in a place that doesn't pass judgement,"_ she told me.

I couldn't help but laugh, feeling a little more at ease.

"_What's your story, cherie?"_ she asked me.

I sighed. "_Well, I've been living with my uncle ever since last May. But in August, when I was due to transfer to a new school, my uncle got this bright idea..."_

* * *

"..._so then Charlie—oh! Can I have that drink, Trixie? Thanks!—so then Charlie grabbed my arm and yanked me out of the hall and I've been hiding out in her dormitory ever since._"

The group of drag queens, transvestites, and cross dressers stared at me pityingly. Chairs had been pulled over and even a table pushed closer to the bar so everyone could gather around for Story Time.

"_Did you get to tell James goodbye?"_ one drag asked me eagerly in a sort of whispy voice.

"_No,"_ I admitted, (they 'aww'-ed), "_But I wrote him a letter to tell him I was okay and that Charlie's father was going to put together a case for the school governors."_

"_So when are you going back, honey?"_

_"Um...I don't know."_ I swayed a bit on my stool and the bartender, Trixie, I learned her name to be, carefully straightened me.

_"You better get a move on, cherie, before some other tramp moves in on your man_."

The girls 'mm-hmm'-ed at her comment.

I laughed a little bitterly. "_I'm more worried about no one accepting me for who I _really_ am."_

Silence rang in half the bar as nearly all the occupants regarded me imploringly.

I blushed involuntarily.

One particularly drunk drag queen pointed at me with her glass. _"Sweetheart, we could write a book about it, you 'n me."_ We probably could, I realised...We'd probably have to change all the names so we didn't get sued though..."_Speaking as someone who's a bit _more_ experienced than you in this department, cherie, you've got to stop worrying about what other people think.."_

_"It's not just that,"_ I sighed, _"I've spent so long pretending to be someone else, someone I'm not, I'm afraid that no one...that no one will like me anymore." _I could feel my eyes well up with tears. Alcohol made me overly emotional...

The girls swooped in on me, cooing and hugging me. All the perfume is a little overwhelming, but the sentiment was greatly appreciated.

The original drag queen who had been speaking raised her drink towards me from her chair. "_As long as _you_ love you, then everybody else will too_." She downed the rest of her drink.

All of the girls 'Mm-hmm!'-ed enthusiastically as the patted me daintily on the head.

The haggard drag queen was absolutely right, I immediately realised. Why _should _I hide who I was on the inside? I made just a lovely girl as I did a boy! I was just about ready to leap out of my seat and proudly march all the way back to Hogwarts before—

"_There_ she is!" announced Charlie as she walked through the doors with Cheryl and Ana in tow.

"Charlie, baby!" cooed the bartender, "Where have you been? I haven't seen you in ages!"

"Trixie! I came last weekend but they said it was your night off!"

I looked at Cheryl and Ana in great confusion, but they only rolled their eyes and shrugged. Oh well. That was Charlie for you.

Instead of rushing out the door, I let her talk to Trixie for a while and order a drink. I would tell her when we got back to the dormitory that I was going back to Hogwarts first thing tomorrow morning.

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

**A/N: **

You knew she couldn't stay away for too long ^__^ I even made this a shorter chapter so she would get back there faster. I actually kinda liked that team scene sans Lily...it was fun to get the teams perspective! **Anyways, drop me a review if you don't hate me too much by now...(seven days, ten days...oh maths)**

**P.S. **Be sure to check out my first R/Hr oneshot: _With Her_ !

**P.P.S. **If you guys need a good Harry Potter giggle, watch **_A Very Potter Musical_** on youtube. I haven't laughed so hard in YEARS.


	19. Back to the Beginning

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **24 December 2009  
**Chapter Nineteen  
**"**Back to the Beginning"**

**:-:**

So a singular drink turned into a couple of drinks. And first thing next morning turned into considering rolling out of bed around one in the afternoon and having the girls skip all their classes.

"Oh how I've missed going out with you," Charlie mumbled into her pillow sometime that afternoon.

I rolled my eyes and pulled the covers over my head. I missed going out with her and the girls, too. But not the headaches that followed the mornings after. I snuggled into my blankets more, making myself nice and cosy. I could almost feel the sunlight through the windows penetrate the thick layers.

As happy and content as I felt, I knew that there was something missing.

Running off to France always seemed to be the immediate answer to my problems. Even when Petunia and I were little, France always seemed to be the obvious answer. After my family had been living in Switzerland for a brief year with my father's job, he tried to plead with us and mum to move back to England for a while. "Would you like to live in England where we go on holiday?" he asked us hopefully, "Or go back to France?" he said less jovially.

Petunia and I had looked at each other and then said in obvious tones, "France, of course!" Except it was more of a "_La France, bien sur!_"

My father sighed resignedly.

When James and I had run out of chocolate on our Hogsmead excursion, which one suggested that we just skip off to France for a couple of hours? And when my life blew up in my face because of all the stupid things I had done, where did I end up once again?

But for once in my life, I wanted to run away to somewhere else. I wanted to run _back_ to a place that had only been a home to me for a brief amount of time. I wanted to run back to my teammates and friends, my classes and professors.

I missed Hogwarts.

I missed James.

"Charlie," I said finally.

"Mm?"

I took in a deep breath, "I'm going back to England."

She didn't say anything for a while. Eventually I heard her sigh, "I know."

I peeked out from underneath my covers. "Are you...okay with this?"

"Well no. I miss you like crazy, billy goat," she said openly, looking at me lazily from her pillow. "But I know you're happy at Hogwarts. They have boys there," she added cheekily.

I let out a hollow laugh.

Charlie asked, "Do you want me to come with you?"

I shook my head, "No. I'll be all right on my own this time."

This was nice, I thought, a little hazily as the effects from the night before still had their lingering influence. Charlie didn't hate me. I was going back to school. I was going to play Quidditch and be with James.

Charlie thought silently for a moment.

"Hey, Lily?"

"Mm?

"Uh, I don't know about you, but we have no money to get you back to Hogwarts."

My eyes snapped open.

Well crap.

"_Merde._"

* * *

"Charlie," I hissed, crouching low in the hallway, "What if she's in her office?"

"She's never in her office at this time!"

"But I'm saying what if she _is?_"

"Oh for—_just be quiet_ and keep a look out, okay?"

I 'hmmph-ed' at her. Sneaking into Madame Scapin's office on the slim chance that she _might_ have floo powder was _not_ something I was particularly hell-bent on doing.

And I was getting tired of creeping down hallways trying to not get caught.

It was _so_ exhausting.

Charlie was the first one to peek inside the office. "It's empty!" she informed me excitedly, opening the door and entering. Casting one last look over my shoulder, I followed.

Charlie was already scouring through the items on her shelves next to the fireplace while I did sort of an antsy dance by her desk. I hadn't been in Madame Scapin's in nearly a year and a half. I couldn't believe the last time I was in here, she had been informing me of my parents' deaths. I suddenly felt very ill.

"See?" Charlie hissed, holding up the top of a clay jar, "I told you she'd have some!"

I rushed over, "Okay, I just need a bit and as soon as I'm gone,_ go back to the dorm,_" I told her strictly, ignoring how she rolled her eyes. I reached my hand into the jar and I could feel the powder seeping out of my fingers when I turned and saw the door silently open. I didn't know what to do. I stood there and gaped stupidly.

"_Miss Evans," _she drawled, _"I thought I heard your voice."_

I was honestly caught with my hand in the floo powder jar.

"You are _the_ worst lookout," Charlie informed me tritely.

"_Harbouring a missing English student, Charlotte?"_ she asked conversationally. "_I might be able to convince Madame Maxime to expel you yet."_

Charlie gritted her teeth.

"_And as for Miss Evans, I assume that it was a mistake for you to be turned over into the care of your uncle, as he seems to be unable to keep an eye on you at all.__ I'm sure your ministry can find a new home for you this summer."_ Her face had the amazing ability of showing zero emotion. She must have been at least forty but she had no wrinkles on her face. No laugh lines. Nothing.

"I..." I could form no more words.

Charlie jolted my mind back into action as she nudged me with her elbow.

"Go," she whispered quietly.

"But you'll—"

"_I can't tell you how much I look forward to meeting with your father, Charlotte. I'm sure he and the school board will have so many interesting things to say when I inform him of your recent conduct these past few months."_ She then looked at me, _"And I'm sure your ministry will have something equally interesting things to say about _your_ illegal activities. You're almost of age,"_ she commented lightly, _"Perhaps they will put both you and your uncle on trial as adults. I hear you have an interesting prison up north."_

"Lily, just _go!_" Charlie shoved me.

I fell into the fireplace and said the first place in Hogsmead I could think of, "Three Broomsticks!" I felt my entirety jerked around and I wrapped my arms around myself and held my breath, waiting for it to be over. Eventually, I landed awkwardly in the small fireplace, coughing and sputtering, hundreds of miles away, leaving Charlie at the mercy of Madame Scapin.

I was on my own.

"All right there?"

I blinked open my eyes and saw a silent Three Broomsticks café staring at me on the floor.

"Normally," said Madame Rosmerta with a notepad and pen in her hand, "When someone wants to apparate into Hogsmead, they use the office building in the centre of town."

"Sorry," I mumbled, climbing to my feet and brushing away the ash. I wiped my face.

"Good heavens, is that you, Li?"

"Uh, hi, Madame Rose—"

"No wait, it's _Lily_ now, isn't it?"

I stared at her, "How...?"

"Oooh! I heard about what happened with you from Pomona Sprout a couple of days ago! I wish you would have told me—I would've given you a discount or something! I just think it's so wonderful what you're doing—feminism and all that—my cousin is a _brilliant_ flyer and I've always wished that she could go professional."

I nodded my head along, a little dazed.

"Are you just going back up to the school now?"

"Yes," I answered.

"Oh, then here." She picked up an unopened bottle of butterbeer from a tray she had set down on a table, "Have some butterbeer for your nerves. You were always such a sweet boy."

I took the bottle, "Uh, thanks."

"No problem!" she said, waving me to the door, "Make sure you make time to come down to visit me!"

I waved awkwardly goodbye to Madame Rosmerta and the rest of the café's patrons and began my trek back up to the castle, butterbeer at hand.

The ground was wet, like it had just recently rained, and the path didn't pick up as much dust as usual. Each step I took I felt more and more guilty, unable to tear my thoughts away from Charlie back at Beauxbatons. I wish she had followed me. The castle was looming near, sitting in front of a beautiful reclining orange sun and pink sky. It was a nice day to be expelled at least, I thought. Or imprisoned. Maybe they would let me have one last meal in the Great Hall before taking me away? I drank the butterbeer quickly enough, wishing it were something stronger, and then banished the bottle.

By the time I got to the gates, my palms were sweaty and when I arrived at the entrance my knees were shaking. How should I go about this? I thought, swallowing painfully. Should I storm through the doors of the great hall and start making demands at Dumbledore all the way up at the high table with the staff? Should I wait outside his office to talk to him later that evening? Or go to the Gryffindor tower and see my room! Oh wait, I didn't know the password... Before I knew it, my feet had carried me to the entrance of the Great Hall. I could hear the chatter and conversations just around the corner. Maybe I could creep around the Gryffindor table without being seen and just walk straight up to Dumbledore—

Wait. Dumbledore wasn't there! And neither was Professor McGonagall! Where could they—?

"Hey, is that Evans?"

Double crap. So much for my sleuth skills.

"Lily!" I heard James cry and my heart suddenly jolted.

I looked over and saw him and the rest of the team fumbling out of their seats. There were various cries and shouts of "Lily!", "Evans!", and just plain "You!"

But he was the only one I called out to.

"James!"

I was home.

I nearly cried out in relief when I was crushed against his chest in a tight hug. I felt the team's embrace a split second later, their pats on the back, their hugs, their gestures, their humour, and their love.

"It _is _her, thank Merlin." Maud.

"Lily, we missed you!" Remus.

"What took you so long?" Sirius.

"Please don't leave us ever again!" Jordan.

"Excellent! They can't make us forfeit now!" Victor.

"Good god, if you ever do that to the team again, I'm gonna..." Joeseph.

I had turned them all soft, I thought with a chuckle.

"It's good to see that you've returned safely, Miss Evans."

The hall's noise volume suddenly dropped into near silence. I turned around and sure enough there stood Professor Dumbledore in the doorway standing next to a tall regal man with combed hair and business attire...my jaw dropped and I gasped.

"Monsieur Laynaud!" I said, stunned. It was Charlie's father! I almost couldn't believe it until another man was escorted into the Hall by Professor McGonagall.

I gasped again, extracting myself from the team, "_Uncle John?_"

"We were just at Beauxbatons to pick you up!" he said, rushing towards at me to deliver a bone crushing hug. I was still so stunned and overwhelmed to see him that it took me a split-second to find the strength in my arms to hug him back.

I meant to say, "What are you doing here, you crazy bastard?" but all I was able to get out was a faint, "What...?"

He said in one lengthy breath, "I got a fire call from your old headmistress so we knew where you were, so then I fire called Professor Dumbledore who was speaking with Mr. Laynaud at the time and then we all floo-ed to Beauxbatons but by the time we got there, you had gone and Charlie was being held in the headmistresses' office for insubordination against that horrid woman—"

"Is Charlie okay?" I demanded quickly, snapping my head to look at Monsieur Laynaud.

"Oh she's grounded from now until the end of summer," her father answered as if the situation was not so serious, "but otherwise she's fine."

"But Madame Scapin was provoking us! Charlie was totally goaded into acting out!"

"Believe me, Lily, I've been doing my best to get her fired, but she has rather strong connections to the other members of the school's governors."

"You're...on the Beauxbatons school board?" I asked, nonplussed.

He nodded, "I only just joined this year. But it makes it difficult for anyone to take me seriously when I've got a daughter who's acting out and rebelling because she doesn't want me to be involved with her school."

A lot of things about Charlie suddenly started to make sense.

John continued his story, "And then we just came back here when one of the portraits told us that you had been spotted in the entrance and I was about to approach you on my own before Minnie over there got a hold of me—"

"_Mr. Evans!_" snapped McGonagall.

"What?" John and I said simultaneously, turning towards at her.

My professor looked murderous.

John was hasty to continue, "So here we are!" he chuckled nervously.

"But...Madame Scapin said I was going to Azkaban! And she threatened to have Charlie expelled when nothing really was her fault because she was just helping me—"

"Great Scott, you'd never be sent to _prison_, Lily!" John admonished, as if he couldn't believe that I would even think that in the first place. "Now, I can't speak for Charlie or her punishment, but believe it or not, cross-dressing is not a capital offense." He chuckled. "You're still so gullible, but by gods, I can't get over how much you've grown up," he exclaimed, sounding strangely older than his normal twenty-eight year old self. "You're so _mature_ now."

I glared, mock offended, "I am not!"

"You really are!" my uncle insisted. "If this were just last summer, you would have resorted to whining or throwing a tantrum by now."

"No I wouldn't have!"

"And just look at you now!" he said, stepping back and gesturing to my person, "You're at the top of your class, taking charge of your own destiny and hiring attorneys," he paused, "Speaking of which, why didn't tell me that you were hiring a lawyer?"

"Well, it was sort of a last minute thing and I was angry at you and then we weren't sure if—wait a second!" I said, turning to Charlie's father for the second time, "Monsieur Laynaud, we wrote you almost a week ago and you never got back to us!"

He sighed, a little tiredly, "I'm afraid I've been in the Alps for the past two weeks on a business case. The paperwork on my desk has been an absolute mess and I didn't even see Charlotte's letter until two days ago. I've only just started to meet with your school's governors and present the case."

"So...is there any kind of verdict?" I asked, numbing myself for the blow.

Monsieur Laynaud looked at the aged headmaster, "I think I had better allow Professor Dumbledore to explain everything."

Professor Dumbledore opened his mouth to speak.

"Wait, wait, wait!" I halted him, "Before you tell me...I just...I just want to say thank you...for allowing me to be here in the first place." I swallowed. "I'm...very grateful to the staff and my classmates who welcomed me and let me play on their Quidditch teams."

Yes Lily, I thought, butter them up while you still can.

Dumbledore nodded gently, smiling lightly as he began again, "First, Jacques" Monsieur Laynaud "and I have had an extensive meeting concerning your admittance to Hogwarts. It has been...taken under consideration that the circumstances under which you entered Hogwarts were partially the schools' fault."

I blinked. I could not wait to hear how he figured _that_.

McGonagall pursed her lips tightly.

"Your surname 'Evans' is your legal name and appears as so on all our documents we have on file. And I suppose that 'Li' is just a...nickname of sorts for your first name, Lily. Correct?"

I stammered, "Uh, r-right."

"And I'm sure your uncle misread the application and mistakenly wrote down your nickname, rather than your full name, am I right?"

"Yup!" said John happily.

"And accidentally forgot to write down your gender in the appropriate space. The print can be quite tiny and easy to overlook, I imagine."

"Exactly," John agreed easily.

"Therefore this small mistake caused for you to receive the wrong uniforms which led to the mistaken identity in the eyes of the professors."

I couldn't say for sure, but I think Dumbledore was secretly rooting for me.

I attempted to gauge out the faces of surrounding classmates and staff members, but I was so dazed I couldn't even really see who was standing right next to me.

"And then concerning your position on the Gryffindor Quidditch team—"

"You can't pull me out now!" I begged, "We've just got a few weeks left until the Championship!" My knees were knocking painfully together again, "I came—I came to Hogwarts so that I _could_ play Quidditch. And this isn't the medieval age for god's sake! So you can't in your right mind—" I faltered. Dumbledore never truly seemed to be in his 'right mind'... "—er, let the Gryffindor Quidditch team—"

He gently held up an old and wrinkled hand, "I understand, Miss Evans. But I think you should hear what I have to say on behalf of the school governors."

I gulped.

"After the Grey Lady informed me of this rather interesting turn of events when your friend arrived, I called an emergency meeting for the school board to see if they could finish their current debate about permitting girls to play Quidditch while you were at Beauxbatons,"

"Oh," was all I said. The Great Hall looked at me with a mixture of emotions. Shock and surprise were the most evident, obviously, and some regarded me with wary and unbelieving looks as well. It was eerily silent for the entire Hogwarts' student body.

"Initially, they were entirely against it and demanded your immediate expulsion."

The team immediately erupted into uproarious disapproval but Dumbledore, again, held up his hand and they simmered down.

"But after some mild persuasion, they came to the conclusion that if teenage girls were finding themselves in unethical positions for the sake of a sport, then perhaps we should allow the Championship match be the first trial run demonstration of the movement."

"So I...I can play Quidditch?" I said softly, eyes wide.

Dumbledore nodded gently with that strange grandfatherly twinkle in his eye and smiled, "Yes _Miss_ Evans, you can play Quidditch,"

"I...I can play Quidditch," I repeated. Only this time, it didn't pose as a question. "I can play Quidditch!" I whooped, jumping a mile high into the air, _"_I CAN PLAY QUIDDITCH!_"_

The hall laughed (well, chuckled nervously is more like) and the Gryffindor team started thumping me on the back again and some classmates I was more familiar with came up to congratulate me. I heard Sirius moaning in rapturous joy, "She's back! She's back! Oh thank Merlin we don't have to use ball-hog Blackwell HAHAHA!" I was almost too preoccupied to even notice when James planted a kiss on the top of my head, _"I CAN PLAY QUIDDITCH!"_

"But." said Dumbledore. The hall immediately simmered, "I am afraid that you will have to move out of the boys' dorms for..._logical_ reasons,"

I flushed a deep scarlet and the Great Hall immediately burst out into a buzz of laughter or complete scandal. Oh dear, I was going to be the talk of the town for _weeks._ Months, even. And if the students ever reproduced, which was more than likely, possibly _years._

"Right," I said, laughing awkwardly.

"We've already arranged for your belongings to be moved to the other side of the tower."

"Er, thanks."

"And Professor McGonagall has made a decision on your punishment."

Hell, I didn't care. As long as I wasn't being expelled, it was fine by me.

"Miss Evans," she stared down her nose at me. Being so close to Professor McGonagall was unexpectedly intimidating; she was suddenly a lot taller. I felt my nonchalance dissipate.

"Yes?" I squeaked.

She sighed, and it may have been a trick of the candlelight, but I could have sworn I saw her roll her eyes. "Detention. From now until the end of the year." I tried not to let my relief show. I had honestly thought she was thinking along the lines of corporal punishment... "I have a feeling that dealing with my _dear_ cousin Marie Scapin at your former school can stand as the rest of your penalty."

My jaw dropped. Professor McGonagall suddenly got a lot cooler. I vowed to never complain about her class ever again.

"And as for _you,_ Mr. Evans," said Professor McGonagall in an 'oh-are-you-about-to-get-it' tone. "I don't know _where _in your vastly empty head you concocted the idea to send your only niece off to school with false papers and if I could, I would give _you_ detention for the rest of your life. However, we will have to settle for notifying your company," she practically grumbled.

"But—!"

"No arguments."

Ha ha, John was getting his arse handed to him by my "old-as-the-hills" professor.

"It is time you leave," she told him stiffly.

The team offered John some space so he could give me one last hug goodbye, "Good luck, Lily,"

Professor Dumbledore turned to look at Charlie's father. "Jacques, I believe we will be seeing you tomorrow at the meeting?"

Monsieur Laynaud tipped his hat at him and waved cheerily to me. "I'm off to Beauxbatons again. I'll tell Charlotte that you got here safely," he told me. He was escorted out alongside John by Professor McGonagall. It felt so silly to miss them already, I told myself. I would be seeing them in less than a month over spring break.

"So..." I trailed off, "I'm just gonna go sit and have dinner, if that's okay?" I asked, motioning with my thumb to the table.

"Go," smile Dumbledore, "Your friends are waiting to steal you away."

A smile began to overtake my face as I was sucked into a mass of Gryffindors that shuffled me over the table, trying so hard to contain themselves form bursting out. The Hall was otherwise silent except for us which I found to be a little embarrassing.

At least until Sirius half climbed onto the table, upsetting his neighbours' plates.

"In honour of the return of the great Gryffindor chaser Lily Evans," he pontificated, his voice running through the hall to undo the vast silence, "Tonight, we feast!" he raised his goblet into the air,

James yanked him by his robe, "Sirius, sit _down_, we feast every night!"

But still, the spell in the Great Hall was broken and conversation started up again.

I guess I was already old news. I could help but think of this, and laugh.

* * *

The eight of us—Me, James, Sirius, Jordan, Maud, Joe, Victor, and Remus—were sitting in my surprisingly barren dorm room, standing about awkwardly. The elves had already come and gone to take my things to my new living space. All I had was my school bag with a couple of extra parchments and quills.

They all stared at me

I groaned out loud and announced for the umpteenth time, "I don't want to have to _move_!"

James rolled his eyes, guiding me to the door. "It's just to the other side of the tower, not the castle, Lily."

"But they're _girls,"_ I said, gently resisting being pushed out of the room, "I haven't lived with another girl since last May! I've forgotten what it's like! What with the all the _makeup_ and _hair_ primping and the _squealing..._"

I had truly forgotten how to be a proper girl.

James sighed, leading me (and everyone else) down the stairs. "You don't have to be like that if you don't want to."

"Good, because I'm not going to."

He looked quite a bit relieved.

Wistfully, I thought out loud as we entered the common room, "I can barely believe that it was just last September when I was ogling you and the lads at King's Cross."

James stared at me bewilderedly, "You were _ogling_ us?"

"Are you kidding?" I was practically drooling!

And yet I was still not quite above that...

"_Really?_"

"Can you honestly blame her, Prongs?" Sirius asked, "We had her wrapped around our itty bitty fingers." He waggled his pinky at us for good measure.

"Uh huh," I said wryly, "Just who has _who_ wrapped around their itty bitty fingers now, hm?" I asked, wiggling my two digits comically at him and the rest of the team. "You boys will miss me, just you wait. You'll be begging for me to come back."

I heard wild girlish laughter drifting forebodingly down the stairwell. I swallowed involuntarily.

"Good luck, comrade." Sirius saluted.

"It'll be fine, Lily," Remus assured me.

"We'd come visit if we could, but you know..." Jordan gestured to the staircase. It may have looked sturdy and safe, but the second any boy were to step foot on it, the entire staircase would turn into a giant slide and send them crashing back to the common room. I couldn't help but imagine a giant heap of the Quidditch boys piled at the foot of my staircase.

I smiled sincerely, "Thanks, Jordan." I hugged him tightly as if I was afraid he would disappear forever.

Joe rolled his at us, "We'll see you at practice tomorrow morning, for Merlin's sake," he told us huffily.

I sniffed, "I know, but I haven't been this far away from you guys ever since I got here in September!"

"What are you talking about?" Victor said, frowning, "You were away at Beauxbatons all last week."

I opened my mouth to retort, but deflated. He had a point.

"Plus all of winter break," Maud added.

I glared at them both. "Those don't count!" I said defensively, "You know what I mean!"

Good grief, why were they being so difficult?

Remus cleared his throat.

"Well then, we'll just be going along now," he was looking meaningfully at the team.

"What?" said Sirius, "We're not going to watch her ascend into oblivion?"

"No, _Sirius,_" Remus said, forcing himself to keep his tone level, "We're going to _leave_ now," he threw a quick glance at me and James, so he would get the hint. Fortunately, the rest of the team caught on quickly and began to shuffle off.

"Oooooh, you want Lily-billy and Prongs to have a _moment._"

I could have kicked him.

"Sirius," sighed Remus, defeated, pulling him towards the other end of the common room, "Do you remember when I explained to you the usage of nonverbal clues, and subtle hints?"

"No..."

"Well then." I said, looking back to James a tiny bit expectantly.

"Try and get some sleep tonight, okay?" he implored.

"I will," I rolled onto my tiptoes a fraction to make me taller, waiting. I thought for a moment that he really was going to kiss me, but he didn't make any move to. _I_ could kiss _him_, I thought. I'd done once before, I reasoned, so I could very well do it again. I could kiss him right _now._

But I didn't. I stopped leaning in and I stopped standing on my tiptoes. I could have sworn I heard disappointed groans from somewhere on the other side of the room as I turned a fraction towards the stairs.

"So...we'll see tomorrow morning then?" He said, shifting further and further away from me.

I wanted to pull my hair out.

"Uh, yup. Bright and early."

Neither of us moved.

I sighed, putting my hand on the railing that spiralled along next to the stairs, "Goodnight, James."

"'Night, Lily."

I walked slowly, giving him a chance to call me back down the stairs and pull me into his arms and whisk me away and snog me senseless on the common room couch for all the world to see ...or something. But he didn't.

My nerves continued to fray as I approached the sixth year level, trying to put this off for as long as possible. I shook my head like i would an etch-and-sketch to erase James from all of my thoughts. I picked up my pace and told myself to stop being silly. It was stupid for me to be intimidated by a couple of girls. Jo Channon was in there! She would help me out! Though, we hadn't spoken since I'd gotten back from Beauxbatons since the team hadn't left my side.

Well now I feel guilty.

...and still a little bit unloved.

I bravely (with my hands shaking only slightly) opened the door and kept my head down. I sort of ran into the room, took a quick look around in search of Jo, didn't see her, ignored the girls, tossed my small bag at the foot of the only open bed and hid under my covers.

One day I will have a discussion with the Sorting Hat about what constitutes as Gryffindor bravery.

I held my pillow tightly, knowing that I would be unable to sleep with all of the leftover excitement (and slight disappointment) of the day. After everything I had been through, after all the lying, all the stress, all the rule-_bending, _and after everything I'd seen, things weren't supposed to get _harder_. After all those unpleasant sides of James I'd seen, and all that craziness he endured from me, I realised just how far we both had really come and how much we were continuing to grow more and more together.

I should have kissed him.

**:-:  
****-:TBC:-**

This was honestly the **Never Ending Chapter from Hell**. It originally ended up being **twenty-one pages**, and by then I just had to cut it in half. I would have liked this chapter to be longer, but it's just better if this is the short one and chapter twenty is longer.

So that means you guys are going to get an update in about **TWO DAYS**.

I kid you not.

**Happy Hols, everyone!**


	20. And All the Girls Say

"**Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On:** 26 December 2009  
**Chapter Twenty  
**"**And All the Girls Say..."**

_Dedicated to:_ james-s2-lily, Anonymous, and all the other non-believers! Two days! I told you so!! AAAAAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAH!!!

**:-:**

The following morning I was in for several surprises. First, I dashed down to the pitch (I had overslept...surprise, surprise) for my first morning practice before breakfast as an official girl. The team was already adjourned outside of the locker room and half of them were in the air.

"Lily!" cried Victor, "We were beginning to think the girls had down away with you!"

"Sorry, sorry," I apologised, flicking my braided hair over my shoulder.

"No time for apologies," rushed Sirius, "Everyone up in the air, we've got a lot to go over before the Championship!"

We all groaned. Sirius was in one of his mindsets again.

"Wait," said Maud, already sitting lowly on his broom in the air, "What about that woman who's here to see Evans?"

I looked at him, frowning slightly, "Who's here to see me?"

"There's some weird broad over in the stands that wants to talk to you," he said, pointing to one of the elevated bleachers. I could see a purple-coated woman sitting in the middle.

"She said she's from Witch Weekly and she wants to interview you!" supplied Jordan excitedly.

WITCH WEEKLY WANTED TO INTERVIEW ME?

I let out a frightening 'eep!' and slurred, "Ohmygod, I'llberightback!" before zipping off in her direction on my broom.

"No! _Evans!_ We have to practice!" I didn't respond, so Sirius decided that shouting profanities after me would be a productive alternative.

"Hi!" I said enthusiastically to the woman, levelling my broom, "As was told you wanted to speak with me?" I had a big fat grin on my face as I imagined my picture on the cover of the magazine, smiling and posing with my broom and Quidditch robes, a quaffle under my arm, and my hair blowing dramatically in the wind...

The woman whipped out her quill and notebook. "Maggie Mimbers, Witch Weekly. Can I have a quick word with you, Lily?"

"Absolutely!" I gushed.

She got right down to business, "Is it true that you slept with various members of the Gryffindor Quidditch team before the start of the first semester to ensure your position on the team?"

My enthusiasm dropped so quickly that it might as well have never existed. My dream disappeared with an imaginary pop. I blinked at her, mouth agape.

"No!"

She scribbled something quickly, "Did either you or your uncle bribe the staff or school board with monetary gain in order for you to gain admittance to Hogwarts?"

"No!" I sputtered out again.

And the so-called interview continued downhill from there. After about, literally, ten more seconds of trying to make something out of my first official interview with a famous publication, I decided to cut my losses and bail out as fast as I could.

"But I used to read their magazine all the time!" I whined to the team as Joe and Sirius escorted Ms. Mimbers off the pitch. Could _Witch Weekly_ really have gone downhill since I last read a copy, or did I just used to be really shallow?

The rest of the practice passed without incident except for when I got distracted as I thought about what I used to be like just a year ago. I was always off painting my nails and reading Witch Weekly with the girls in our dormitory, or wearing makeup and short skirts on the weekends. Christ on cracker, had I honestly changed that much in such a short amount of time? Is that why Charlie and I argued so much now?

No, I concluded quickly, shaking my head.

Maggie Mimbers was just a bitch. She got added to my mental pile alongside Madame Scapin.

When practice was over, I put my broom in the shed and called over my shoulder, "I'll see you lot at breakfast!" and dashed off to the castle. I raced back to the dorm in record time, determined to not get the last piece of toast (which was always cold). I showered as everyone was just beginning to roll out of bed.

"Lily," Jo said groggily from her bed, "Your owl dropped off a package while you were in the shower.

I glanced at the window where, sure enough, Chudley was perched.

"_Whooore._"

I hmmph-ed at him and thanked Jo.

It was a large brown package with fresh and precise wrappings, sitting next to my pillow. As I picked it up to see who had sent it, I let out a startled yelp and nearly dropped the neatly wrapped box. The return address was stamped as Madame Malkin's uniform shop in Diagon Alley. Tearing the wrapping to pieces, I nearly swooned at the contents.

My skirts with the red and gold stitching and matching v-neck sweaters! My chemises! My tights! Oh my giddy aunt, I finally had my dream uniform! I held the pile to my chest and silently skipped around the room.

"You all right, Lily?" one of my roommates asked warily.

"I'm wonderful!" I declared, jumping into my four-poster and closing the curtains to change.

"Right..."

I ended up posing in front of the mirror for so long that I completely missed breakfast. But I was no longer hungry and classes were suddenly no longer unbearable. Neither was waltzing down the hallway and being stared at. On my way to Transfiguration, I spotted a familiar face and ran and jumped in front of him.

"Look Joe! I'm in a skirt!" I held it out for him to see.

He grunted, uninterested.

Well, at least he reacted better than Maud. He had just turned bright red and walked off. I don't think he had ever quite fully recovered from initially finding out that I really was a girl. He sometimes had great difficulty meeting my gaze when we spoke which never failed to amuse me.

As the week progressed, it turned out Maggie Mimbers was actually the first of many that approached me over the course of the next few days. In fact, there were also photographers who came up through Hogsmead and tried to snap my picture on my way to Herbology.

Fantastic.

And interviewers who wanted follow-up questions answered the article published about me.

Joyous.

Plus nasty rumours that probably stemmed from Maggie Mimbers concerning how I made the team in the first place.

Brilliant.

As well as teasing and testing my patience because everyone was always staring, pointing, and whispering.

Spectacular.

What I couldn't understand is how the hell they had even gotten into the school. Well...actually how many times had I snuck in and out of Hogwarts without being detected? Good grief, what was _wrong_ with this school's security? I really needed to talk to Dumbledore about that. Fortunately, I had my friends in Gryffindor, mostly the team, who dutifully shooed away unwanted attention.

And _then_ I had to undergo a series of interviews with the some ministry representatives that all seemed to follow the same pattern:

"We realise that we cannot overrule Professor Dumbledore and the school board's decision concerning your sceptical attendance to Hogwarts, however, there still rests the case of your uncle."

"What about him?" I asked warily.

"Were you aware that what you and your uncle were doing was illegal?"

"Um. Which parts?"

"Although the school officially ruled that there were so-called 'errors' on your application, the ministry formally concluded that they were forged documentation used to create your alias. Your uncle has already agreed to take the blame and accepted the financial penalty but for the record, but we need to know if you were fully aware of the legal standings."

"Oh. Well, yeah, I kinda figured that it was a big 'no-no'."

"So then why did you acquiesce to your uncle's suggestion?"

"Huh?"

"Why did you do it?"

"Oh. Because I wanted to play Quidditch." Duh.

"Right..."

I apparently had no reason to fear for John's job since I had been discovered. His boss, the senior editor of some sports magazine, thought my situation would make a _fascinating_ article so my story, as told by John, would be appearing not only in the _Daily Prophet_, but _Quidditch Monthly_, _The_ _Modern Broom_ and a handful of smaller local papers too.

However, I _did_ have reason to fear for my physical well-being. Slytherin had apparently been banking on my not returning to Hogwarts and Gryffindor desperately trying to train Alex Blackwell as a reserve chaser for the Championship. Now that I was back, the Slytherin team didn't appear to be too thrilled.

This point is further proved by the hate mail—I kid you not, _hate mail—_I received at breakfast that usually read along the lines of: _"We will knock you out of the sky", "We'll leave the mudblood in the mud", "Go back to the kitchen", _et cetera, et cetera...I didn't really care about the letters (the one howler was just aggravating), because I could just choose not to read them and burn them over breakfast.

Sirius actually made a bit of a bonfire out of them on the table and tried to roast a conjured marshmallow until McGonagall put a stop to him.

But then one day, someone broke into the Quidditch shed and tried to vandalise my broom. The eccentric fourth year would have succeeded in snapping it clear in half had not a snogging couple hidden under the stands spotted him and decided to investigate. Fortunately, one of them happened to be a prefect and was able to dock of points, rescue my Cleansweep, and escort the Slytherin to Dumbledore's office.

I now kept my broom in the dorm under my bed, wrapped in an extra blanket.

The animosity only grew and eventually the assaults grew and began to target me directly. One afternoon when I was just finishing studying the library during my lunch hour, I was heading back to the tower when I brushed against somebody.

"Slut," he sneered.

"Douchebag," I countered automatically, not even breaking pace.

Wait.

SLUT? WAS HE FREAKING KIDDING?

I whirled around and stared at the green and silver tie around his neck.

Oh it was _on._

Unfortunately for me, Mr. I-Make-False-Assumptions was thinking along the same lines and already had his wand pointed at me.

"_Diffindo!"_

I barely managed to dodge the hex and whip out my own wand.

"Uncalled for!" I shouted, outraged.

"You don't belong on the pitch. _Flipendo!_"

"_Protego! _Screw you! Yes I do!"

"Quidditch is a man's game!_ Locomotor Mortis!"_

Dodge. "_Reducto! _Iguess that's why you're not playing!"

"_Levicor—"_

"_Confundus!"_ I beat him to it and watched with satisfaction as he confusedly blinked in disorientation. I was about to disarm him when I heard a raised voice cry out.

"Miss Evans!"

My stomach dropped and I quickly lowered my wand.

"Professor McGonagall, it wasn't my fault! He tried to jinx me!" I cried, waving my arms at the student

McGonagall had to only study the scene for a split second before she pursed her lips, "Detention Mr. Philips. Two weeks." To me she said, "Do try to look after yourself in the coming weeks, Miss Evans. If you can handle your position on the Quidditch team, then I'd imagine that a couple of Slytherin supporters would hardly cause you trouble."

I tried to remember that when I was nearly pushed down a flight of stairs by the right wing Slytherin chaser. And then sabotaged in Potions.

I think I was more pissed about the latter. That was my second best class!

Word spread like wildfire that I had been nearly injured (again). Sirius must have been told through the Gryffindor grapevine because later that day I discovered that the chaser had been hospitalised and not only did Sirius, James, have detention, but _Remus_ as well. I only found out as I was ducking and dodging between large groups on my way to class and overheard a classmate tell their friend in Ravenclaw. After I exited that same lesson, I nearly jumped out of my skin when I felt a tap on my shoulder.

"Hi Lily," smiled Nigel standing next to a thick looking blond, "Me and Smith are here to personally escort you to your Charms class."

"Um, it's just two floors up; I think I'll be all right."

Nigel shook his head, "I have strict orders to walk with you to your classroom. And from there, you will be accompanied by two of the Hufflepuff chasers to Defence Against the Dark Arts."

"You're kidding." I deadpanned.

"Sirius has agreed to make us each two galleons richer if we ensure your safety." He shrugged.

"_What?_"

"Oh come on, Lily, we're all going to be late at this rate."

I looked at Nigel and I looked at Smith so-and-so who had yet to say a word.

I sighed, "Fiiiiine."

"Excellent," he looped an arm through my elbow and Smith did the same. We began our stroll down the hallways in this fashion, much to my embarrassment. "So, Lily, about that time I thought you were making a pass at Joanna and I almost punched you..."

I huffed.

* * *

After the two Hufflepuff chasers (Diggory and Gordon) took me to Defence, it was Jordan and the equally young Ravenclaw seeker who escorted me to Muggle Studies (which was a little embarrassing since they were both about half my height). Then, from Muggle Studies to Ancient Runes I walked with Dunick and Moore from the Ravenclaw team, and the walk from Ancient Runes to History of Magic was with Sirius and Remus.

"You're going to be a poor man by the end of the day," I informed him sourly. But I could not deny that nobody from Slytherin had approached me since.

"Talk to James about it," Sirius shrugged.

Remus elbowed him and I stored away the exchange in my memory for later.

I was excited to see that it was only James who met me outside of my History of Magic classroom and I cheerfully walked back with him to the common room as it was my final lesson of the day. Though, I seemed to be the only cheerful one as we walked in mostly silence. I wanted to reach out and hold his hand. Or have him put his arm around my shoulders. Or just do _something_ that made him feel like my kinda-almost-maybe-would be-sorta boyfriend.

As we neared the Fat Lady's portrait I asked slowly, "It wasn't your idea to hire bodyguards before the match...was it?"

James grimaced, "Well, Remus accidentally gave me the idea. He jokingly suggested that we charm the suits of armour to follow you."

I rolled my eyes, jumping into the portrait hole in front of him. "You really should have asked me," I told him over my shoulder as I walked towards my side of the tower.

"I didn't want you to get injured before the match!" he said defensively, "Or at all," he added a little more quietly under his breath. His eyes bore into mine a little more than usual.

I tried not to smile too much at his concern, but I may (or may not!) have stopped breathing for several seconds.

"Well, I think I'll be safe from here." I said, teasingly, gesturing to the common room.

He laughed, running a hand through his hair, "Yeah, I know."

I stood there awkwardly, nodding, and waiting.

Waiting, waiting, _waiting _for him to kiss me.

"See you at dinner then?" he said eventually.

I bit the inside of my cheek, "You bet."

Would it look terribly desperate if I just grabbed his face and slammed his lips on to mine? I entertained the thought as I climbed the stairs. A little bit miserable, I entered the dorm.

"Hello Lily,"

Startled, I turned and saw Joanna sitting on her open four-poster.

"Hello Jo," I said affably, masking my current displeasure with James. I took my shoes off and leaned against my own bed, "I didn't know that anyone else had gotten back yet."

"I know we haven't spoken much recently since you've been avoiding the dormitory and everyone, but I just wanted to say that I hope you won't mind terribly not being a boy anymore."

It always cut into me how honest Jo was. It was like a breath of fresh air. "Well, uh, I never actually _was_ a boy, Jo. I was just pretending so I could play Quidditch. But it's quite nice now that I can act like a girl now, honestly. What with long hair, and skirts and the like."

Footsteps gently pounded the stairs and a moment later the door was swung open in a breeze.

"Hello Emma,"

"Hey Joanna. Who were you talking to?"

"My newly feminised friend," I felt strangely proud when she called us friends, and a little guilty for having gotten so caught up in Quidditch that I hadn't hung out with either her or Nigel.

"Oh is Lily here?" said a girl—Emma, I reminded myself—peering around the room.

Intimidation seized me as I frantically tried to summon any remaining social skills in my body. I leaned a little out of my partially closed four-poster.

"Uh, hi, Emma." I said.

She spotted me, "Oh excellent!" she then called out the door and down the stairs, "Marla! She's up here!" Emma then walked into the room and threw her stuff on her own bed, "We've both been itching to talk to you."

I squirmed, "Er, really?"

She nodded, "Oh yes. You seem such an interesting person and we're willing to bet anything that you have some fascinating stories from the other side of the tower."

"I do?"

I heard footsteps coming around the stairs and a moment later, Marla appeared in the doorway.

"Lily!" she said, delighted, casting her bag aside.

"Hi..." I tried, attempting to match her enthusiasm. I was very surprised when she crossed the room and threw her arms around me in a big hug.

"Oooh, we wanted to have a girls' night tonight in honour of you!" she said excitedly.

"In honour of _me?_" I was still reeling from the shock of being hugged. I had forgotten about that.

Girls hugged a lot.

Blokes not so much.

"Please say you'll come! It's just going to be the four of us!" She nodded her head in the direction of Emma and Jo.

"Um...okay." What else could I say?

She squealed again and did a strange jittery in-place dance. I suddenly had a very sinking feeling. "This is so exciting! I'll go get the chocolate!"

And then, my sinking feeling inexplicably disappeared. Even if it wasn't French chocolate, I figured that I would manage.

* * *

"So...you've been rooming with all the boys since September?"

Later that evening, the four of us, Jo, Emma, Marla and me were sitting very cosily on my tiny bed with a pile of passable Honeyduke's chocolate and pumpkin juice between us. We were all in our pyjamas—an actual pyjama party!—and the girls all appeared to be at complete ease. Well, Jo was always that way, regardless of the situation, but I was fairly sure that she was enjoying herself.

"Yup." I said.

Marla and Emma exchanged excited glances, "Could you tell us about them?" Marla asked slyly.

Emma rolled her eyes, "She just wants to know about Remus Lupin."

Marla blushed, but did not deny anything. "It's just that they've always seemed so...exclusive. So it's hard to get to know them is all." She harrumphed.

"And we know that you've gotten to know James..." She said knowingly, smiling like she was sharing a secret.

I went beet red and began to babble helplessly.

"Wha—I didn't—you, and—uh, but we—how...?"

"Oh come on!" Marla said, rolling her eyes, "It was _so _obvious in the Great Hall that he likes you—"

"He wouldn't even let go of you!" Marla interrupted.

Ha. I couldn't even get him to touch me_._

"Which is so just so friggin' sweet that it made my teeth ache."

"You two make an adorable couple." Marla giggled.

"Uh, wait," I said, backpedalling as fast as I could, "We're not really...together." James and I hadn't really had time to discuss our position since our conversation under the Quidditch stands. And we hadn't even kissed in _weeks_. My frown deepened.

Marla and Emma exchanged quick glances before silently imploring me to explain. Or entertain their fantasies. Whichever.

"Usually when a boy kisses a girl, it has romantic or brotherly connotations," offered Jo, "And I'm going to assume that James doesn't think of you as a sister after his display in the Great Hall—"

"He only kissed me on the head!" I pointed directly to the spot on my head that his lips had touched. I sighed.

Marla tilted her head, sensing my discontent. "Maybe he missed your lips...?"

Emma guffawed, "Maybe, but it's kind of hard to miss her whole face."

I was getting really embarrassed now.

"We...haven't really decided what we're going to do..."

"Wait, have you kissed him at all?" Emma asked, curious.

Should I tell them? I thought unsurely. I saw them looking at me with wide and attentive eyes. Ah what the hell. Why not?

"Well, yes...sort of." I said carefully.

"Aaaaaaaaaww!" They cooed, making me laugh a little.

"Wait," said Marla, suddenly quite serious, "Did you kiss him as... Li Evans?"

"No!" I quickly clarified, more embarrassed, "I've been going to Hogsmead as Lily."

"Is he a good kisser?" Emma asked slyly.

I fidgeted, "Uh...well. We haven't really snogged or anything. And the last time I kissed him it was a week after the Gryffindor-Ravenclaw match when I was on my way to meet him in Hogsmead..." I trailed off, unwillingly remembering Snape kissing me on the path after having called me a liar and saying that I was worse that James' ex-girlfriend Danielle and him promising me that he would never hate me and my stupidly thanking him (John was right, I really _am _gullible)...and then launching myself at James as he tried to walk away and landing on the ground and then him discovering that I was also Li...

Yes, that was a rather pitiful (and painful) kiss.

"You haven't kissed him since _when?_"

"Well...when he first found out...and before that...Boxing Day."

Jaws dropped. Just Emma and Marla's really. Jo just looked more bemused and slightly spacey.

"No...way."

Self-conscious, I pouted, "Well it's not for lack of trying!" I defended, "I've been pretending to be a boy since I got here and then he found out and then he got mad at me and then I got caught and then I went to France, and now we have practice every night until the final match..." I trailed off. "I've been trying for the past two days to get him to kiss me but—it's—not—working!" I sniffed and Emma's arms came out of nowhere and hugged me.

The girls looked thoughtful for a minute until Marla sat up excitedly.

"Oh! I have all of last month's issues of Witch Weekly! I think I read an article or two in one of them that might help..." She shot off to her trunk and started tossing things out until she found a large stack of Witch Weekly magazines and threw them in our direction. She hastily threw on her reading glasses and rejoined us on my bed. She immediately made sure that we each had one to look through before starting to flip through the pages of her own magazine.

"You really think that there's something in one of these that might pertain to my situation?" I asked her dryly. Former cross-dresser nabs boyfriend?

"Well no," she answered honestly, "Not exactly anyway. Here! Take this for example, _How to Make Him Make the First Step._ Or..." more page flipping, "_How to Steer the Relationship. _See?_"_ She held up the pages for me to see. I was unconsciously flipping pages without even reading the titles (I was still a bit bitter about Maggie Mimbers...) but rather, just listening to Marla.

"Oh here's one," said Emma, "_Is He Really Dedicated?"_

"I liked the article on illegal red-back snorcacks in Portugal."

We all slowly turned to look at Jo who was holding up her own personal magazine that didn't seem to be of the Witch Weekly variety.

"Thanks, Jo," I said, "But how does this help with my situation with James?"

"It doesn't. I just thought you all might be interested. Would you like to read the article?" she offered her magazine to us.

"Maybe later," I said.

"You know what," said Marla, snapping shut a magazine, "I think that _you_ should kiss him first! You should ask _him_ out!"

"Ask him out _where?_" Really, where would I actually _go_ with James? What was there to do with a significant other in a remote magical castle?

The girls looked at each other, "Hogsmead," they said obviously.

"Or if you're _really _adventurous, the Forbidden Forest," Marla winked.

I sighed. I supposed there really was no other place nearby to actually go and act all 'couple-y'. I wasn't exactly up for an escapade in the forest with Merlin knew what roaming about.

"So go!" Emma waved at the door.

I did a double take between her and the exit, "Wait, you mean _right now?_"

"_Only put off until tomorrow the things you are willing to have left undone_." Jo quoted in a sage voice.

Emma and Marla nodded in agreement.

"Do it!"

"It'll be _sooo _romantic!"

So about sixty seconds later I was back in my old dormitory, determinedly standing outside James' bed. Peter and Sirius were snoring away, but otherwise the room was silent.

I carefully pulled back the curtains around his four-poster.

"Psst! James!" I hissed.

He grunted.

"_Jaaaaames,"_ I tried again, poking him for good measure.

"Mmwhaa?" his eyes began to blink open. He peered at me blurrily for a minute, the cogs in his brain still whirring into action. He propped himself on his elbows and squinted. "Lily?"

"Hey." I said quietly, sitting myself on to the bed and pulling one knee up to my chest and letting my one leg swing over the side.

James reached over to his nightstand and put his glasses on so he could properly stare at me. "Hi...?" he said unsurely.

"What's up?"

He stared at me, deadpanned, "Well I _was_ sleeping..."

I waved off the thought with a vague hand. Sleeping. Bah.

"We should hang out sometime." I told him.

He frowned, "We hang out all the time."

"No we don't! We're always with the team! Do you think we could, I don't know, hang out just one-on-one? Like in warm ups at practice?" When we occasionally excluded Victor... "Except...not...at practice?"

James raised his eyebrow to a distinguishable arc, "You mean...like a date?"

I brightened, "Yeah! A date!"

"You're...asking me on a date?"

"Well I mean, only if you want to..."

James blinked at me before holding up his wrist to look at his watch. He stared at me again.

"Lily...it's two in the morning."

"Mm," I tossed this fact around in my mind for only a couple of seconds, "I know. I just wanted to ask you about it before I forgot."

"Shouldn't I be the one to ask _you_ out on a date?" he questioned.

I rolled my eyes, "Sorry. I've stolen your masculinity for the moment to further things along quicker." I gave him a pointed look.

"Well...please don't. I like being the boy in the relationship."

"Sorry," I said again, unapologetically, leaning closer.

Get the hint, you stupid, stupid boy, I thought at him.

James cleared his throat, "So why don't we talk about it tomorrow morning?"

He wanted to talk about his feelings and I wanted to snog. There was something funny about our situation here...

I rolled my eyes again, "Before practice?"

"Yeah," he agreed sleepily, "And we can go" yawn "down to Hogsmead as soon as the season's over." Two weeks.

I brightened, "Okay!"

"And next time...I get to be the one to ask you out, all right?"

I rested my hands and chin on my propped up knee, subtly leaning closer.

"Deal," I promised. "Goodnight," I smiled softly at him, the feeling of expectation growing inside me once again.

"Goodnight," he said, taking off his glasses and putting them on his nightstand. He pulled back up the blankets and readjusted himself, preparing to sleep again.

My hope deflated and I was suddenly incensed. I yanked down his blankets sharply.

"Why haven't you kissed me?" I asked him suddenly.

"Er, what?" He was utterly still.

"You said under the bleachers before I left that once everyone knew I was a girl that we could date! And one of the requirements of dating is kissing!"

He sat up bolt right, "I never said that!"

"Well, I jumped on you before you could finish," I relented, my resolve faltering, "But that's what you were about to say! I remember because you tried to convince me that you hadn't meant to kiss me at your house!" He said he'd had three shots of firewhiskey and it had made him "impulsive". My heart sank a little. What if he really hadn't meant to? I mentally shook my head to clear away the thought.

"Well I figured we wouldn't be able to do anything until this summer!" he defended.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realise dating someone was a _seasonal _affair." Him and Danielle had had a summer thing, right? My old insecurities started to come back.

"It's not!

"Do you not like me anymore?"

"No!"

I paused, crestfallen, "You—you don't?"

James rolled his eyes, "I meant no; I do not _not_ like you."

"Ugh! I _hate_ double negatives!"

"Okay well I'll write that down for next time then," he said sarcastically.

"What is it then?"

"What's what then?"

I raised my voice, "Why are you pussy-footing around and—" James hastily shushed me, looking over to make sure his roommates remained fast asleep.

"I'm not," he said quietly.

"Then why haven't you kissed me? At all?" I demanded, but not as harshly as I would have liked.

"Because I don't want to muck it up!" he hissed back.

"Muck _what_ up?" I asked.

"You! Us! What else?"

I glared, "Well right now there is no 'us'." Then I thought, "Is it _me?_ Are you embarrassed by _me?_"

"Please," he guffawed, "I get more embarrassed by Sirius on a daily basis than I could ever be with you. I just don't like how there's so much attention on the team right now."

"This isn't about the team," I said.

"I realise this, but right now _everyone's_ going to be looking at us until the match and _everyone's_ pressuring us to win and _everyone_ is counting on us!"

"So what's that have to do with you and me?"

He leaned forward and pleaded, "It has _everything_ to do with us," he sighed and looked at his sheets for a while. "I know you've been having a lot of problems with some classmates because they think you had to bribe us or whatever to guarantee your spot on the team. And I've heard what they've said—"

"Yeah," I said dryly, "Because I obviously care so much about what other people think of me." Come on now, _really_.

He sighed again, "And I'm not...comfortable...with everyone else watching us or having them criticise you or the team. Things...are still really crazy and everyone has such a high level of expectation."

"Well there's no one else here but you and me," I said evenly, silently daring him, "And I'm not expecting anything from you right now other than for you...to just be you."

And for a kiss. A kiss that wasn't desperately delivered on a dirt path to Hogsmead, a kiss that wasn't nervous under mistletoe…just a kiss that meant something.

"I don't care about what anyone else says. We can shove it in their faces after we've won the cup," I chuckled.

He didn't say anything and I narrowed my eyes at him as best I could in the dark.

Oh screw it, I thought.

I leaned in quickly and kissed him hard and that was all the prompting James needed. He attempted to push himself foreword with one hand as he wrapped the other around the base of my neck to pull me closer but I reciprocated James' enthusiasm so eagerly that he fell back onto his pillow. I grinned against his lips. We kissed a little erratically because I frankly had no idea what I was doing until I began to find a rhythm. His other hand found my waist where there was a gap between my shirt and pants, and we both froze, not really knowing what to do about his hand on my bare skin. Neither of us moved, holding utterly still until for some reason we both broke out into a fit of muffled laughter and pulled away a little.

The moment was further broken by Sirius' voice.

"Oy, I hope it's just Evans giggling in James' bed...if it's anyone else then it's just going to be plain _weird._"

Someone else stirred in their canopy.

"No, it's even _more_ weird if it's Evans," said Peter, his voice groggy.

There was a groggy sputter, "What's Lily doing in here...?" said Remus.

"Sounds like James, apparently."

I made a face and blushed. James quietly groaned.

"I'm sorry for surprising you with this," I said.

"Sorry for being such an arse about it," he apologised.

"Good," I smiled, "I'm going back to my room." I whispered, pecking him on the lips before leaping off his bed. I dashed to the door, ignoring the grumblings coming from other canopies. Shutting the door, I could hear Sirius ask curiously, "So that _was_ Evans, right?"

I skipped across the common room and up the stairs to the girls' side. I swung the door open to the dorm. "I kissed him!" I announced proudly.

The girls respond appropriately.

"AAAAAAAGH!"

"Oh my god!"

"No way!"

"What'd he say?"

"This is so exciting!"

"Ohmygosh!"

"Eeeeee!"

"Tell us _exactly_ what happened!"

I smiled. Maybe rooming with these girls wouldn't be so terrible after all.

* * *

And I was right. The weeks that followed were wonderful. There were, obviously, some Slytherin team members that continued to try and cause me bodily harm, but overall I made it through the hallways unscathed. Then there were some issues with their captain, however, and one intriguing incident that involved Sirius and one of the roaming suits of armour trying to do something creative to him...but Sirius never went into details.

More importantly, I kissed James, James kissed me back, and we did it many more times in the following weeks.

Eventually, the first week of April, the week before spring break came around. It was late, and the stars were out but I could barely muster enough energy to look out the window as I lay awake in my four-poster, unable to fall asleep. My head was bursting with emotion as I rested, frozen, thinking, brooding, and worrying about the Championship Match the next day.

**:-:  
****-:**_**To Be Concluded**_**:-**

**A/N:**

**I've waited a **_**long**_** time to type that... Let's see when I'll be able to spit out the final chapter, hm?**

**Reviews are Love.**

**Happy Hols, all!**


	21. The Championship

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On:** 30 December 2010  
**Final Comments: **Well everyone...it has taken six years to get to where we are today. I can hardly believe I started this the summer before I entered high school and am only now just finishing it. I'm actually a little proud that I never gave up. Thank you for all your support over the years. I hope you enjoy the final instalment.  
**Chapter Twenty****-One  
**"**The Championship"**

**:-:**

"Are you ready?"

No response.

"Are you ready?"

No response.

"Are you ready?"

No response.

"Are you—?"

"_Sirius,"_ I snapped, slamming my fork and knife down on the table, "If you ask me that _one more time _I swear I'll..." I was cut off by James hands attempting to pry the silverware out of my death grip.

"He's just anxious," he said.

"Well, tell him to stop it because he's making _me _anxious!" I hissed back.

James didn't. He figured that distracting me some more would be better than yelling at his best friend.

Maud groaned, "They're doing it again."

I pulled away from James to flick a piece of bacon at him and stick out my tongue.

Maud responded by tossing a piece of toast at my newly cropped hair in retaliation. I rolled my eyes as it missed my face entirely and got stuck in the hair somewhere by my ear (this is why he wasn't a chaser, I thought with a roll of my eyes). Again, my hair just barely fell below my ears.

Last night, I stared at myself in the mirror while I brushed my fourteen-inch-long-and-then-some hair. Uncle John had given me a spell that quickly grew it out so now I didn't have to temporarily charm it like I had been doing on my Hogsmead trips. Knowing it was so easy to get back, I suddenly didn't mind missing it for a while.

"Hey, Emma?" I said over my shoulder, looking at her reflection in the mirror. She was the only other girl in the room.

"Yes?" she leaned out from inside her four-poster bed with her book.

"Are you any good with scissors?"

A short time later, I left the dormitory to say goodnight to the rest of the team.

"Hey, look!" said Sirius as I descended the girl's staircase, "Li's back!" the team that had been sitting by the fire looked up, "Sorry, mate, but since you went missing we had this lovely bird named Lily take your place. No hard feelings, it's just that she looks better on a broomstick than you do."

"Ha ha ha," I rolled my eyes, but a grin still spread across my face, "It's for old time's sake," I told them, "I'll fix it after the match,"

Besides, my braid kept whipping me in the face when I was flying...

So the team and I (as well as half the school) left breakfast early to either claim the best seats or prep ourselves in the locker room. The door slammed shut behind me but we could hear all of the stands alive with noise, the students positively buzzing with delight. I couldn't blame them; it was Gryffindor verses _Slytherin_ for the _Cup_ for goodness sake.

"Okay," started Sirius right away, "We have sacrificed a lot to be here, folks. Our early mornings to the Quidditch Practice Gods, our Hogsmead trips to weird French men in death matches thanks to Evans..." he gave me A Look.

"Hey!" I objected.

James patted me on the back.

"The Slytherins have been able to push us off all year—but not today! Today, their number is up! Today the fat lady has finally sung! Today is December 2012 for the Slytherin team!"

We cheered awkwardly, a little confused.

"Sirius, if it's December 2012, then it's the end of _everyone_."

"Quiet, Moony, I'm on a roll and it is very important that I express the level of doom and destruction that is going to be inflicted on this team!"

"Don't get over-confident," Remus warned.

Sirius waved him off, causing his friend to sigh.

"Joe! It's a cloud-free day so we will be able to fly out of the sun without problem. Jordan, I want you Wronski Feinting left and right until their seeker gets dizzy. Maud, nothing gets past those posts. Chasers," he paused and stared at me, James, and Victor, "Well. James, don't fall out of the sky. Victor, don't hesitate on your passing. Lily, you nail every son of a bitch that tries to take that quaffle even if it means you have to flash your boobies at them."

"Hey—!"

"Aye, aye, captain," the rest saluted.

Sirius nodded, "We're going to _kill,_ and we're going to destroy, and we're going to kill again, and then we're going to destroy some more, and then we're going to kill..."

We let him continue on a while. I rolled my eyes and leaned my head against the metal door. I could hear the commotion from the stadium outside. Against my better judgement, I cracked the door open and peeked outside. Banners were dangling off the stands decked out in either reds and golds or greens and silvers. I could see which sections of the fans were supporting who by the colours they were donning. There were still plenty of people attempting to pile into their stands as they passed by the locker rooms. Students, press, photographers...it felt like half of England was trying to see this match. I saw a group of some familiar people weaving towards the professors and commentator's stand as they passed the locker room. I gasped and stuck my head out further.

Charlie spotted me first out of the group and pointed me out to the others. I could barely make her out as I squinted let alone know what she was saying to her father and...

Uncle John!

And, uh, bartender Trixie?

"Go Lily!"

"Roast 'em alive!"

"_Bonne chance, beb!"_

Stunned, I waved back. Then I saw the line of people who were standing next to them. There was Andromeda Black and her daughter Nymphadora (slash-Anna-slash-Abercrombie-slash-Franklin...) Madame Rosmerta, Ana, Cheryl, and...Danny.

Danielle.

I pulled my head out of the door, _"James,_" I whispered, jealousy creeping into my chest. James leaned over curiously and peered outside. "Danny's here! At Hogwarts!"

"I know," he whispered back, confused at my urgency, "She said she wanted to watch us play,"

"Oh," I whispered once more, "Okay."

Well then. That was that, I guess.

"ARE YOU TWO EVEN LISTENING TO ME?" shouted Sirius.

James and I exchanged sheepish looks just as the whistle blew.

Sirius may have been prepared to chew us out, but it was time.

I could hear the commentator as the team exited the locker room. _"It's a great day for a Quidditch match, folks. My name is Nigel Lovegood and I'll be one of your commentators this afternoon._"

"_And I'm Joanna Channon and I have very little experience with Quidditch,"_ added a more wistful voice honestly. _"I think I'm just here because my boyfriend is the real commentator."_

"_Er,_ _let's have a good match, everyone!"_

My ears perked up at the sound of familiar voices, but as both teams exited, we couldn't hear anymore as he was drowned out by the yelling and chaos from the stands.

I couldn't help but look around, dazed, because the stands seemed to be filled more than ever. In fact, some people had taken to standing on the ground as everywhere else was full.

"Oh, _hell,_" said Joe all of the sudden, "Is that Snape?"

I gasped, "_What?_" My head snapped around to see where Joe had been looking.

Sure enough, dressed in bright emerald robes was Snape, a worn broom at hand. His face was set like stone he marched next to the captain to the middle of the pitch. He refused to look at me.

"Shit," said Sirius, "I thought we messed up his shoulder bad enough last year he wouldn't be able to play."

Oh yeah. How could I have forgotten? How many times has I sat through Quidditch matches with Snape and discussed sensitive topics? Meaning, my habit of lying and how James and Sirius injured his arm last year under questionable circumstances and rendered him unable to play Quidditch...

And now it looked like it was about to come back and bite us in the arse.

I elbowed him hard in the gut, "Sirius! Why would you do that? You do realise that's why he jinxed James' broom during the Gryffindor-Hufflepuff game to get back at you!"

Heads snapped in my direction.

"He did _what?_" cried the team, including James.

The whistle blew.

"Captains! Shake hands!" directed the referee.

I paled. "Er, didn't I tell you that?"

"No!"

"_Captains!_"

"Uh, let's talk about this later," I suggested, pushing Sirius towards Woodsworth.

"Snape jinxed James' broom and you didn't tell us?" snapped Victor.

"I _couldn't_," I hissed back, "He knew who I really was at the time!"

Gulping, I took off into the air with everyone else. James pulled on my handle closer to his broom.

"He _jinxed_ my _broom?_" he asked lowly, leaning closer.

"Uh..."

This did not bode well for the relationship.

"Chasers ready? Keepers ready? Beaters ready? Seekers ready?" After a various amount of nodding, the first referee made a move to throw the quaffle.

I locked eyes with Snape and his black eyes practically burnt right through me. I could barely hear the whistle blow and I flew off through the air a good three seconds after everyone else.

"_EVANS."_

"Sorry!" I apologised, catching up.

"_And the toss up goes to Slytherin! Caught by Snyder and he's making his way down the pitch, __passes to Snape who dodges that bludger—OUCH!—but not Potter!"_

"_Neither of them are very happy looking..."_

"_Right you are, Jo! Potter and Snape are looking like a couple of sour apples!"_

I glanced over my shoulder just in time to see Snape spinning out of control and I assumed that he had just been slammed into by James. Guess he wasn't too pleased with the new information I had just shed light on...

"_And if the ref's not gonna call a foul on that, I won't complain..."_

Surprisingly, the referee didn't call on him. I dodged one of the players and made myself open to receive a pass from James and immediately spotted Victor about forty feet ahead. Wordlessly, and all in one movement, I ducked under one of the chaser and threw the quaffle with all my might. Victor had to shoot after the ball in order to catch it before he was able to send in sailing through the left hoop.

"_Ten points to Gryffindor!"_

"_Really?"_ said Jo, surprised, _"Is that how much a goal is worth? Ten whole points? I could have sworn it was only two..."_

"Great job, Victor!" I cheered. He shot me a thumbs-up.

"_Um...anyway,_ _excellent goal by Bishop! And now that the ball's rolling...or flying in any event," _he chuckled_, "Representing the House of Slytherin, we've got Meyers, Snyder, Nott, Velde, Rennison, Snape, and current captain Woodsworth!_"

While he introduced them, the three of us attempted to reclaim the quaffle.

"_Representing Gryffindor_," a deliberate pause to allow cheering,_ "We have Daniels, Brooks, McClain, Bishop, Potter, the _lovely_ Miss Evans," _another pause for catcalling and wolf whistling,_ "And captain—ooooh, a bludger right in the gut for Snape delivered by the Gryffindor captain Black!_"

So Sirius was a little pissed as well then.

"_Wa__it was that the snitch?"_

My stomach clenched. The snitch? Already?

"_Haha, just kidding__ with you, folks,"_

The crowd booed.

Nigel huffed, "_Alright, alright, learn to take a joke, people. Sheesh."_

Uugh...I thought I was about to be sick all over the pitch.

"Lily, catch!" Victor threw the quaffle at me and I barely caught it by the tip of my fingers.

"DUCK!" someone else cried.

Shrieking slightly, I flattened myself against the handle, curling my body over the quaffle as a bludger passed through the air where my head had just been.

"_Close call there for Gryffindor's newest chaser,"_

I was hurtling down the pitch, players blurring all around me. The green was an unfamiliar colour to me on the pitch and it made me think of a twisted Christmas as I saw the emerald Slytherins flying next to the gold and scarlet Gryffindor robes. I flew diagonally across the pitch just as Victor was flying under me and James a little forward and above.

"I'm open!" he shouted.

I threw him the ball as hard as I could.

"_And Snape comes out of _nowhere_ on that play and intercepts the quaffle!"_

Crap. I slid to a halt in midair and spun around to follow...and was painfully slammed twenty feet to the side by a passing Slytherin chaser—Snyder?—and nearly ended up in the stands. I straightened myself as quickly as I could, feeling nonplussed. I was used to a bit of elbow shoving and maybe an accidental collision...but not being tossed around like a friggin' rag doll.

Snape passed it forward to Nott who launched it to Snyder who scraped the inside of the left goal post with the quaffle.

Slytherin had their first ten points of the game, uncomfortably quickly after we had just scored.

As discouraged as we were by this, the Gryffindor team doubled our efforts. On a very elaborate play, Jordan provided a distraction for the Slytherin beaters—Velde and Rennision—by feinting, Sirius and Joe wove through all the players to knock Nott and Snyder out of the way, Victor blocked Snape, and James and I did I toss off until we got in the scoring zone and he catapulted the quaffle right through the middle.

I barely had time to cheer before I felt a bludger trim the back of my broom. Time to move.

Ten more minutes into the game, Slytherin scored twice more; one goal by Nott, the other by Snape. I was uncomfortable with how adept of a flyer Snape actually was. Even though I knew he had played Quidditch before, for some reason I could never picture him as the sporty type. He had pointedly been refusing my stare which was just fine because I was focusing on the whereabouts of the quaffle. If he wanted to hate me, that was his problem, not mine.

Hmmph.

...Although, I really do hate it when people hate me.

I was able to put this out of my mind however when Snyder purposely knocked into me and Snape shot past and scored a goal. We weren't friends anymore, I had to remind myself. (And it was about eighty-five percent not my fault).

James made a superb steal right from under Snape's nose and he lobbed it forward with a powerful throw to Victor. Woodsworth was practically a quarter ways down the pitch, way out of the keeper zone. Victor had a clear shot...all except for that incoming bludger that one of their beaters wacked in his direction and zipped right past my elbow.

It was a sort of mind-out-of-body experience I had when I streaked after the bludger to intercept it (with no bat, mind you) so that Victor could score. The bludger felt like cold hard led, only slightly bigger than the leather quaffle. It was such a strange occurrence to be grappling with another ball on the pitch other than the red ball.

I heard the stands cheer loudly, signalling that Victor had scored, but I was still literally, _holding the bludger_ with both my arms tightly wrapped around it like it was a squirming and lurching child I was afraid of dropping.

"_Interesting move employed by Evans__ there,"_ commented Nigel.

"_Do you think she's forgotten that she's a chaser and not a beater?"_ Jo asked curiously.

"Evans!" I heard Joe shout, "Evans, let go!" He raised his bat, ready.

And have the bludger go after me at a close range? I shook my head furiously, "Uh-uh!"

"_Evans!"_

"No!"

"Do it!"

"_No!_"

"Trust me!"

I made a pained noise and quickly let go of the bludger and ducked and covered.

I heard a giant _CRACK_ and a heavy whizzing noise. I looked up, and the bludger was now zooming in the distance towards another player. I kinda sorta really hated the Slytherin beaters, I decided soon after when my ribs were still aching after having held on so tightly to that stupid bludger.

"All right, Lily?" he shouted.

"Thanks, Joe!" I yelled in a rush before shooting off. Next time I would just let the damn thing hit me.

"JOE!" bellowed Sirius frantically above all the noise. I looked over to our captain and immediately saw why.

The Slytherin beaters were prowling underneath Maud like green sharks at the end of the pitch, completely unnoticed by our keeper.

"Get down there!" he ordered as he went chasing after a passing bludger with a raised bat. Once he hit it towards Nott, I followed behind it so that I would be able to catch the quaffle once it dropped. I looked over my shoulder nervously, never liking not knowing where both bludgers were at a time. One was right in front of me shooting towards Nott but where was the other—?

I heard it before I could see it. But instead of the all too familiar dull thudding sound of a bludger hitting a body, it was a thud followed by a clanging sound. I didn't turn fast enough to see him actually get hit by the bludger but I still gasped and cried out as I saw his head collide with the hoop and watched some of the blood smear against the goal post and some fall a hundred feet to the ground. He was pitched forward, sliding off his broom and barely got his hand attached around the golden hoop.

"_Maud!"_

I could hear the stands rise in uproar, boys yelling and girls screaming foul or shouting for a medical time out.

He dangled from the left hoop as the quaffle sailed through right above his head. He tried desperately to get his leg up without slipping and was quickly clutching it with all of his limbs. Joe valiantly went off to chase after his broom while Victor took a hard bludger as he tried to grab the quaffle. Neither James nor I had any chance to get to the ball in time as it fell towards the earth and into the hands of Nott and right through the centre hoop. Another bludger—hit by Rennison—was going back towards Maud and Sirius hastily flew to intercept is as the quaffle went right over both their heads and back through the post.

With Maud out of the way, Slytherin had scored three times in the span of about ten seconds before Sirius was able to hastily call a time out.

Victor, who had regained control after being slammed by the bludger, wobbly descended and James helped Maud down from the goal posts. I was scared when I noticed that our keeper was startlingly still as they slowly came down. Miss Pompfrey was already halfway across the field and Joe was landing with Maud's broom in hand, right next to her.

James and Maud slowly touched the ground and Pompfrey was starting to direct team to step away from him "for just a moment so I can make sure he hasn't got any brains spilling out of his ears, dammit!"

The team grumbled and reluctantly took two tiny steps back. The commentator was going on in the background, announcing the score—thirty to ninety, Slytherin—and talking about latest broom models to distract the crowd as we stared at our keeper sitting on the grass with his eyes closed looking like he might fall over if the wind blew too hard.

"I'm taking him to the medical tent," announced Pompfrey, conjuring a stretcher and helping Maud onto it and keeping a hand on his chest, forcing him to lay back.

The team roared in outrage.

"We need a keeper!" Joe yelled at her, "We don't have a reserve! We don't have _any_ reserves!"

"He's fine!" Sirius added desperately, "Aren't you, Maud?"

Maud nodded.

"Yeah..." He sat up, went cross-eyed, and proceeded to fall off the stretcher. The team rushed to set him back upright.

"I'll try and fix him up as fast as I can," said Pompfrey, already starting to direct the stretcher off the pitch.

"But we _need_ a keeper!" Joe swore viciously.

"Hey, it's not his fault," defended Victor.

The team dissolved into bickering and squabbling, making my head hurt. What _were _we going to do? I thought despairingly.

"Guys, can we _please_ stop arguing?" Jordan begged. "The sooner Maud gets better, the sooner he can play again," he reasoned.

"But what the hell are we going to do without a keeper?" I demanded out loud, furious at the circumstances. Their beaters were already killing us, I added to myself.

"Hope that she can heal him fast," said James with grim undertones.

My heart dropped and judging by the looks of the rest of the team, they were feeling the same way.

That was the turning point of the match. It all went downhill from there. Victor said he could try staying back in the keeper zone as he had the most experience in that position next to Maud. But after Slytherin scored four goals, and James and I none, we decided that we were better off with attempt to double our efforts as chasers.

Within an hour, it was 230 to 80 in favour of Slytherin. I had scored one goal, and Victor and James two apiece. Our last goal was nearly half an hour ago. We were drenched with sweat, waiting anxiously as there continued to be no sign of Maud. Head injuries were tricky, but at the same time I wondered if Pompfrey had been bribed by the Slytherin team to detain him longer than absolutely necessary.

"_My god, either Gryffindor better score soon or somebody put me out of my misery,_" the commentator had moaned and much to my horror, a large amount of the crowd cheered in agreement. _"OUCH! Jo!"_

"_Don't worry, Lily,"_ said Jo in a dreamy voice, probably overtaking the megaphone, _"I elbowed him for you. Speaking of which, why don't you elbow one of the Slytherin chasers?_"

"_Oh hell, this is gonna bruise,"_ grumbled Nigel, _"And for those who don't know, elbowing _is illegal _and results in a _penalty shot _which Gryffindor can't _afford _right—_EVANS, THEY'RE CORNERING YOU!_"_

What the—?

A split second later I understood what Nigel meant as one bludger nailed me in front of my left shoulder at the same time the second one slammed into my shoulder blade. I thought for a split second that my arm was about to fall off. I then came to a startling realisation as I watched the beaters fly off after the quaffle fell out of my tight hold and was stolen by Snyder.

"I can't move my arm!" I yelled, horrified, using my right arm to shake it.

James spun one-hundred eighty degrees and grabbed Sirius' robes and said something I couldn't hear. They both looked up at me.

"Time!" Sirius called.

"_Christ, Lily, I tried to warn you! Uh, in a totally unbiased way of course."_

"_Gryffindor captain Sirius has called another time out on the side of the pitch completely opposite of Miss Pompfrey. Perhaps he did this on purpose?"_

"Lily, are you all right?" James shouted, flying quickly over to me as we began to land.

I gritted my teeth to keep from crying out in pain. Slowly, the feeling started coming back into my arm. I tentatively tried making a fist and bending my arm at my elbow. James was by my side the second my feet touched the ground, yanking the neck of my robe to reveal my shoulder. I undid the top to buttons so the team could inspect it better.

"How bad does it look?" I asked, trying not to look at it as he ran the pads of his fingertips over the spot. I took deep breaths and tried to convince myself that it was only a mild stinging sensation and not a painful heart-pulsing throb that numbed my arm. I could have sworn the bones in my arm were still vibrating. The rest of the team was quick to surround me. I could hear Sirius chanting: "Oh please don't be too banged up, oh _please_ don't be too banged up; not another player, not another player, _please _not another player..."

"It's swelling," he said.

"Already?" I repeated, finally looking at my shoulder and cringing. I studied the angry red skin in a perfectly round protrusion with budding dark purple and blue swelling beneath the surface. I looked on the other side, only to see the exact same pattern.

"Hey, it's actually turning a pretty colour..." said Jordan, squinting at the bruise.

"Oh good," I gritted, "Now it can complement my eyes," I batted my lashes at him.

"Does anything feel broken?" Victor asked.

"I didn't hear anything snap," I said, unhelpfully.

"Can you move it?" James asked me, serious.

I rolled my shoulder a few times, sucking in a breath.

"Yeah...I'll make it."

"Good," said Sirius before turning to his fellow beater, "Joe, I'm making it your personal job to nail Snivellus with every bludger you can, and I'm personally going after Velde and Rennison."

"What's Snape's problem anyway?" I muttered to myself, scowling.

"Well I suspect it's because he liked you," Remus said quietly so the rest of the team wouldn't hear.

Where the _hell_ had he appeared from?

I gaped at him stupidly.

"Er, I gather that you didn't realise this?"

"No!" I cried.

"Well...considering that you always sat with him for the other matches, he might have viewed those as dates—"

"But—I—that's not..." I floundered. Where the hell was my alleged boyfriend to back me up on this? I thought desperately.

"Well he shouldn't be in such a strop about it! I certainly never thought of those as _dates_. He was always talking about blackmailing me! And look how he's acting now!" I pointed out towards the pitch, stamping my foot childishly.

"He's probably bitter that his feelings weren't returned...and that you started seeing James," he paused, "Speaking of which, I wouldn't recommend mentioning this to him, in any case..."

I scoffed before hissing, "I'm _pretty sure_ he's over me. In case you missed it, he didn't really seem to care that his friends almost popped my shoulder out!"

"Yeah, I could see that all the way from the tent," said a new voice to the group. The team spun on their heels.

"MAUD!" we all cried.

"Thank. God." Sirius said, relieved. He had no hesitation in wrapping his arms around our keeper's shoulders tightly.

Maud went a little red and scratched his neck, embarrassed. "I had to sneak out while Pompfrey was distracted."

"You sure you're all right?" I asked, concerned, as Joe peeled Sirius off of Maud.

He nodded, though his gaze didn't exactly meet mine, "Yeah..."

"Eyes up here, buster," I teased.

"Sorry...I just keep seeing four of them." He blinked furiously again.

James and I exchanged alarmed glances and we (as well as the rest of the team) couldn't help but glance down to double check. I adjusted my robe self-consciously.

"You're sure you're all right, Maud?" asked Victor, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Uh...yeah, I think so." He shook his head furiously and blinked a couple of times.

"Pompfrey's coming," Joe said suddenly.

"She'll stop Maud from playing!" cried Jordan.

"Up in the air, everyone!" shouted Sirius, waving for us to all quickly hop back on our brooms and take to the air with renewed vigour.

"_Oh and it looks like the Gryffindor keeper has returned to the pitch,"_ said Jo wistfully, drowning out Pompfrey's unhappy reprimanding.

James got the quaffle quickly and dove down to avoid a chaser before passing it forward to Victor who crossed in front of him. Victor very nearly handed it to me next to the scoring zone, making it my turn to go for a goal. I sucked in a big breath and made the loudest noise possible, ("!") and got to see the look of confused fear on the keeper's face as I charged at him with the quaffle raised like the true lunatic that I really was. I threw the ball and didn't even have to watch it to know that it went through.

230 to 90.

Finally, at long last, there was triumphant cheering from the Gryffindors. If we could just get the snitch and end the match as quickly as possible, I wouldn't mind having only scored the fewest goals the whole game. I was spinning back around, pumping my fist in the air, when I accidentally elbowed the keeper in the face.

"Foul!" cried the referee, blowing the whistle.

Argh, bugger.

"He flew into my elbow!" I defended, pointing at the spitting angry keeper and captain of the Slytherin team, holding his eye.

The referee pulled the whistle out of his mouth, shook his head and said, "It's a foul. Sorry, love."

"Well take you _sorry_ and shove—!" Victor yanked me by the back of my robes and pulled me towards the rest of the team migrating towards the other end of the pitch.

"The last thing we need right now is a technical foul too," he said, knocking my head lightly with his knuckles. I scowled and looked over my shoulder. Woodsworth, rubbing his face, said something to Snape and gestured sharply to the Gryffindor goal posts.

My displeasure deepened. I was actually embarrassed that I had _accidentally_ fouled someone. And he wasn't even bleeding. I voiced this to James as we flew down together for the penalty shot to be taken and he doubled over in laughter.

The players lined up along the keeper zone to watch the shot. All attention was focused on Snape, Maud, and the goal posts. I could hear Jordan, somewhere up in the atmosphere, screaming or cheering from above. His voice was getting steadily closer and closer as he came down to support Maud. Snape tucked the quaffle nearly under his arm and made a beeline for the right post.

I was gripping my broom so hard that it nearly shot forward on its own. James was tugging at the roots of his hair with both hands and Sirius was watching through his fingers. Joe was slapping his bat against his broom to sound distracting, Victor was encouraging the crowd to make as much noise as possible and Jordan was rapidly descending from the atmosphere, shouting loudly. As Snape neared the goalpost and neared Maud, he sloped downwards, slowly crossing all three posts. He then shot straight up, narrowly missing our slightly disoriented keeper, and threw the quaffle over his head with both hands.

The quaffle sailed into the middle hoop and Maud was still spinning. Even I could acknowledge that it was a beautiful move, as much as I resented him then.

"Stop! Stop!" Jordan was yelling, waving widely, "I've got it! I've got the snitch!"

"Jordan got the snitch!" Joe shouted.

"_MCCLAIN'S GOT THE SNITCH?"_

"It's over!"

"We've won!"

The referee fumbled for his whistle and hastily blew. There was an eruption of noise from the stands, but I couldn't tell what kind.

Had we...won?

Panting, Jordan nearly flew his broom into Joe as he rushed to join us.

"I-caught-the-snitch-before-Snape-took-the-shot!" he said in one big rush.

"What?" No one had understood him.

Jordan swallowed and took a deep breath, "I caught—I caught the snitch before Snape made the goal—we've won!"

"WE WON!" The team started shouting, but I held in my cheering as I watched the second referee flew over to the one who had blown the whistle and felt my heart sink. They exchanged a few short sentences before they directed their brooms to the commentator's box where Professor Dumbledore, McGonagall, and the other professors were seated. The stands went quiet.

"_It's a __TIE?"_ cried Nigel in outrage.

The pitch exploded in sound.

"_My sentiments exactly,"_ he grumbled in response to the shouts of disapproval from the crowd.

"_Perhaps they should toss a coin for the Cup?_" suggested Jo.

"But Jordan caught the snitch before Snape made the goal!" I screamed, furious. I was half tempted to whip out my wand and amplify my voice to let the whole stadium know how I felt.

"No one witnessed the catch but the two seekers and the Slytherin seeker is saying that the goal was made before he caught it."

"_Of course_ Meyers is going to say that!" I shrieked. "He wants to win!"

"Well as of right now, it's a tie."

"BUT JORDAN CAUGHT THE SNITCH FIRST!" Some vessel was about to burst, I just knew it.

"Lily, your face is getting really red..."

"I KNOW IT IS, THANK YOU MAUD. NOW GO SIT DOWN PLEASE BEFORE YOU FALL OFF YOUR BROOM."

Maud whooshed away.

"Look Mr—er, Miss Evans," blundered the referee, "I realise that may be so, but neither of us were able to witness the catch. I'm sorry."

We were tied. And I may or may not have been ready to kill one of the referees.

"So...what do we do?"

"I REFUSE to share the Cup!" roared Sirius, having his own tantrum. The stands were getting agitated again as well. They only started to settle when I noticed Dumbledore gesture politely for the stands to silence themselves again. He pointed his wand at his own throat and muttered spell before his voice was heard across the pitch: "_Each captain will choose one chaser to take a shot that will hopefully break the tie._"

My stomach dropped.

The ref blew his whistle and then flew away as quickly as possible once he caught my glare.

"_Looks like __there's going to be a short pause for both teams to choose their player,"_

Everyone landed on the ground, the cries and expletives echoing across the pitch. I couldn't tell if they were directed to the teams or to the referees. Either way, no one was happy. The commentator started explaining to the stands what was going to happen and who would be pitching first—Slytherin.

We exited the pitch, immediately joined by Remus, and Sirius started pacing as soon as we were on the sidelines.

"Okay," he said, turning about the grassy corner furiously, "I'd be willing to bet that they use Nott for the throw. He's got the strongest arm. James' is our strongest arm, but Woodsworth has got a Comet 900," he rattled, but I wasn't listening. I was distracted by Snyder and Snape on the other end of the pitch who were both arguing angrily with Woodsworth. From what I could pick up, they both wanted to take the shot.

Victor elbowed me.

"Hm?"

"Pay attention."

"Well I wanna know who they're picking," I said, craning my neck over Joe's shoulder.

"Looks like Nott," he said.

"Snape looks pissed about it, too." Joe added.

"Think we could distract him with something shiny on the ground?" I asked dryly. The boy had the attention span of a bird.

"No," Sirius muttered, pouting before he brightened with a new thought. "Lily—!"

"I am not flashing him, Sirius!" I snapped.

Half the team visibly deflated.

Christ.

"Jeez, you're going to give Maud a nosebleed at this rate," commented Victor, nodding towards our keeper.

"Speaking of which, you need to get up there now," said James, alarmed. I turned and saw Nott waiting with one of the referees in the centre of the pitch. We both pushed him forcefully back onto the field only to have James follow him out there to help him keep his balance as he climbed back onto his broom.

"We're doomed," moaned Victor, watching Maud fly slightly sideways to the hoops.

I kicked his shin.

Nott quickly took to his own broom and accepted the quaffle from the referee in the air. He wasted little time in approaching the scoring zone, his broom being one of the fast models. Maud looked to be moving in slow motion in comparison and I nearly covered my eyes when the quaffle was launched from Nott's hands towards the far right post.

It went sailing—

"HE MISSED IT!" I cried, excitement bubbling in me like a shaken bottle of butterbeer. Technically, Maud had reached for it but angled himself so far down that the quaffle hit the tail of his broom and bounced off the rim before falling, but still! No goal! Then I realised: "Maud's going sideways—_Maud is falling off—_WOULD SOMEBODY GET HIM DOWN, PLEASE?"

Miss Pompfrey was already on the move, storming through the middle of the grassy pitch with a look of fury about her and she plucked him off the broom right out of the air and dragged him back off the pitch.

"He'll be all right," Victor said confidentially as he watched Maud get an earful from the irate witch.

"We still need to pick someone!" Jordan said with a growing sense of urgency.

Sirius started to wring his hands together as he paced. "Someone with good one-on-one practice and speed and nimbleness and high accuracy marks from practice—"

Remus tried to stop his rambling, "Sirius—"

"—and can perform under loads, and I mean _loads,_ of pressure, and can carry the element of surprise with them—"

"_Padfoot,_" said James, loudly.

"—because we have to do something unexpected...something crazy."

Sirius looked at me.

"What?" I said.

"_You're_ unexpected and crazy," he said obviously.

"I am not!" I objected, offended. I looked to James to support me on this, but he was pointedly avoiding my gaze. "You know I don't perform well under pressure!" I went on. I really, _really_ did not want to take this shot. "Victor can take it!"

Victor, who had been starting at the clouds, scoffed, "Uh-uh, no way you're all putting this on _me._"

"I'll do it," said James, his face portraying a dead-set emotion.

"No...Lily _should_ take it," said Remus suddenly.

My eyes went wide like saucers. The traitor!

"How do you figure?" I asked, nonplussed.

"You're a lefty!" Sirius agreed, excitement spreading across his face, "But we rotate positions so much, they probably haven't noticed. They wouldn't expect it!"

James looked at me weirdly. "You're a lefty?" he asked, surprised.

I huffed. Some boyfriend.

"Plus," Jordan added. I also noticed the snitch was still flapping uselessly in his hand. "They'll think that your bad arm is your good arm!"

Merlin, even the little one was betraying me.

Sirius nodded, "They're right."

I let out a noise like: "Nuuughrrghhpph."

A look of dawning realisation crossed Sirius' face, "You'd be able to make the Coroner's Corner Shot!" he said.

My incredulousness turned into severe scepticism, "You want me...to fly all the way up to, and swing _completely_ _around,_ the middle hoop and get the quaffle through the left one...without getting it knocked out of my hands or wind up getting knocked unconscious?" I glared. "Do you know _why_ they call it the _Coroner_ Corner Shot? That's because _coroners_ deal with _dead_ people. It's a suicide throw."

"Possibly. But you're small and quick enough to pull it off and you've got the third fastest broom on the pitch."

"But if Woodsworth so much as touches me while I've still got the quaffle, the shot won't count!"

"That's fine. If that happens and we're still tied they'll just make each team shoot again."

"You can do it, Lily," said Jordan with unyielding support.

The team stared at me.

"Okay FINE." I growled, "I take the suicide mission. But I'm only doing this once!"

"There's a good sport," Sirius patted me on the back. He went to retrieve his broom on the grass. I could hear the rhythmic chanting picking up again. It had a mix of pounding the stands, shouting, and screaming.

I yanked James away from the rest of the team.

"James, I can't do this," I said quietly.

He shook his head. "I _know _you can," Even as we were being ushered out to the field, he leaned in for a kiss.

"Oy! You two can smooch _after_ we've won the Cup!"

James dove in for a quick peck anyways and we stepped back onto the pitch hand and hand.

"If you make it," he said, "I'll take you to France this summer. Er, legally, I mean."

I blinked owlishly at him.

Mistaking my reaction, he quickly backpedalled, "Uh, well you know that we have a house on the coast and all and my mum likes you and she bought this muggle chocolate fountain thing last year," he rambled nervously, "and Charlie vacations down there as well and we always have people from school stopping so we don't get a lot of privacy, but I mean it's usually loads of fun—"

"James, you had me at chocolate fountain," I told him seriously.

He stopped. "Really?"

"I'd have to double check with my uncle," I admitted, shrugging and trying not to smile _too_ much, "But I would love to visit you in France. Heck, I'll even pack my broom and we can start practicing for next year!"

"_Next year?"_ roared Sirius, appearing seemingly out of nowhere causing us both to jump. "Let's focus on winning the Cup _now!_"

"Right, sorry!" I shook my head to get myself back on track.

"Good luck," James said quietly, squeezing my hand before slowly detangling his fingers from mine and urging me forward.

"_Looks like_ _it's the keeper verses...the cross dresser. Er, sorry, professors; just kidding again..._"

No, no, no. I've changed my mind. I don't want to do it.

Oh _god_, I couldn't do this. I wanted to go back to my happy thoughts of James and chocolate fountains in France.

The referee handed me the quaffle and he motioned for me to take off into the air with him. Both teams remained on the ground since there was no need for them to be in the air. There was so much noise coming from the stand that it was making me dizzy.

What was I supposed to do again?

Uhh...

Quidditch! (That was a start.) Quidditch and quaffle! Chaser! Me, chaser!

Um, um, um.

The Coroner Corner Shot!

Woodsworth was weaving in and out of the goalposts, waiting for me to approach.

"GO EVANS!"

"COME ON LILY!"

"LIL-AYYYY!"

"GO, GO, GRYFFINDOR!"

The referee popped the whistle out of his mouth, "You gonna go soon?" he asked.

I did not even merit him with an answer. I squeezed the quaffle tightly and zoomed off in the direction of the goalposts. The cheering increased even _more_ and I thought I might fall off my broom if my legs turned anymore into jelly. I drew closer and closer and the keeper stopped weaving. I made a point of pretending to go right, to lead him off, so he would think I was only faking once, but zipped back towards the centre hoop.

Here it comes, I braced myself.

I poised like I was about to throw the quaffle, but at _the_ last possible second, I pulled it back and spun so fast around the hoop in a jug-handle turn that my shoulder was closer to the ground than my knees. The keeper spun and attempted to follow me but as I came round the front, I brought the quaffle out singlehandedly from under my arm to aim and throw it towards the left goalpost.

It left my fingers as soon as Woodsworth's fist found my face and I lost all sense of direction.

There was cheering, there was booing, there were shouts of indiscernible emotion. I heard my name shouted from the team below. I clutched the side of my face and tried to blindly steer myself to the ground. I could feel blood at the corner of my mouth.

"_Lily!_"

"Did I make it?" I asked as soon as my feet touched the grass.

I heard my name being chanted.

Somebody laughed, "Yeah you made it!"

"And you got smacked in the _face!_"

I cracked open my eyes just in time to be lifted off my feet by James. Despite the roar of the crowd, I could still hear him whisper into my ear, "You were brilliant," and he kissed the top of my head.

"SO EFFING BRILLIANT!" exclaimed Sirius, jumping on top of us, "I LOVE YOU BOTH _SO. MUCH._ RIGHT NOW." He jumped off us and went to run and hug the rest of the team. "WE'VE WON! _WE'VE WON!_"

"We did it," laughed James. He looked like he was going to say something else, but I cut him off by kissing whatever part of his face was closest to my mouth_._

I never saw the crowd pouring on to the pitch in a blur of scarlet and gold. I only realised that there was more than just me and James on the grass when both of us, and the rest of the team, were hoisted onto the shoulders of the student body, the cheering so loud that I couldn't even hear my own thoughts. I looked at James and never had I seen him smile so widely and I couldn't help but feel this bubble elation swell in my heart.

We had won the Championship, but I felt like we were victorious in so much more.

**:-:  
****-:FIN:-**

A six year journey and it's finally over...sigh...it's actually finished.

...

Quit laughing! I'm being serious! It's finally over! No more chapters and no sequel!

Nothing!

Well, okay, just a tiny Epilogue.

_TINY!_


	22. Prince Charming Didn't Own a Nimbus

**"Girl Got Game"  
****By: **Liebling  
**Updated On: **31 December 2010  
**Epilogue  
**"**Prince Charming Didn't Own a Nimbus"**

**:-:**

****There was a thump and the sound of a puff of smoke from the fireplace.

In the library of Number Twelve Grimauld place, The Boy Who Lived looked up from a particularly aged copy of_ Quidditch Through the Ages_.

"Somebody's in the fireplace!" Harry called over towards a flight of stairs.

"Just tell them we're in the kitchen!" One of the 'grown ups' yelled back. Harry fought the great urge to roll his eyes, annoyed by the fact that they were once again isolating the kids from the meetings.

"Hi there," said a young gentleman coming into the doorway coming from the entrance hall.

"Hey," said Harry, "Everyone's down the hall in the kitchen. Third door on your right."

The man who had brown hair and a charmingly youthful look about him smiled gratefully. "Thanks," he said sincerely, patting the soot off his muggle-style shirt. "You must be Harry," he said, grinning a little more.

"Yeah," he said, fighting the hormonal urge to just be antagonising to all adults.

"I'm Jordan McClain," he said in a kind voice, approaching Harry with an extended hand, "I was a friend of your parents,"

Harry nodded, shaking his hand. He was used to most people in the Order introducing themselves that way. It was polite, but it always inadvertently set a level of expectation for him. "Really? How did you know them?"

Jordan laughed, "We all played Quidditch together, of course!"

Harry's brow furrowed. "Wait…I thought women weren't allowed to play on the house teams when my parents were there?"

Jordan's smile slipped right off his face in shock. He didn't say anything, but just stared at him.

"What?" Harry asked, a little offended.

"You never—?" he started and then tried again. "You don't_ know?_"

"Know what?" he demanded.

"_You don't know how your parents met?_"

Behind them, two plates belonging to a godfather and an ex-professor exiting the kitchen slipped from their hands and fell to the polished floor.

* * *

The sound had been deafening.

Cheering, chanting, screaming…all coming from to stands…all directed towards us.

Dumbledore was positively beaming as he handed the trophy to Sirius who might have been crying a little bit. (I wasn't about to tease him because my face was wet too). He took one look at James and me who had been floating around on the shoulders of fellow Gryffindors', and practically chucked it at us.

Together, James and I took hold of either side of the cup and hoisted it above our heads.

* * *

"Sirius? Remus?" said Harry as he turned around and saw his ashen faced older friends in the doorway. "How did my parents meet?"

Sirius didn't say anything.

"Ah, we came in here to tell you that we were taking a break and thought you might like some snacks," Remus said faintly as if he hadn't heard him.

"Okay," said Harry slowly, "But—"

"Well since it looks like our break is over, we'll just be going back to the kitchen! Come along little Jordan!" Sirius grabbed both Remus' and Jordan's shirts and dragged them along as they tripped over the broken snack plates on the way to the kitchen.

Jordan shot him an apologetic look as he disappeared around the corner.

* * *

If possible, the cheering only grew _louder_. Someone had turned on a magic radio and amplified the music so that they echoed on top of the noise of the stands. People were dancing on the pitch and throwing scarlet ribbons into the air. Someone set off a round of firecrackers. Uncle John and Trixie were a part of the group carrying the team and Charlie was jumping up and down, holding my broom over her head. Danny waved to me and James, holding up a scarlet and gold banner, and Nymphadora was already attaching herself to Remus leg while her mother went on cheering with everyone else.

"Yes, yes, all right, now put them—_put them down_." McGonagall was pushing her way through the crows with a giant camera in her arms. With the help of Dumbledore, she was able to prop it up on the grass and prepare it to take a picture.

"What do I—how the—where is the button..."

I looked at James and said (well, shouted) seriously, "We're pretty fantastic, aren't we?"

"Lily," he said (bellowed), "You are in your own class of amazing."

* * *

Harry stormed up to his old professor and his godfather as they were seated in kitchen, surrounded by Order members in the middle of a meeting, and demanded, "How did my parents meet and how did they end up together?"

Remus stopped chewing on his waffles and Sirius started to choke on his eggs (they had an affinity for breakfast foods at odd hours as it was nearly three o'clock in the afternoon). They exchanged nervous looks.

"Woah, woah, woah, what a second," said a tough looking man with short hair and thick arms crossed across his chest at the end of the table, "Who never told Harry how Lily and James got together?"

"Quiet, Joe!" snipped Sirius.

"He knows too?" demanded Harry, angry.

"Um," said Sirius.

"Well you see..." trailed Remus.

"Uuh..."

"Oh, yes, Molly, I would love some more biscuits, thank you!" A strategic change of subject, the ex-professor thought.

"YES! ME TOO!" Sirius agreed immediately, practically lunging across the table with his plate. "Let's go eat in the drawing room, Moony!" he suggested once the food was piling off is plate.

Knocking over his chair as Remus stood, he quickly agreed.

Harry stood painfully aware of how out of place he was in the room, silently glowering as he watched them leave the room. He looked at the man called Joseph Daniels and opened his mouth to ask—

"No way, kid," he cut him off, "I am not going to be responsible for emotionally scarring the Boy Who Lived. Go ask those goons," he motioned towards the vacated doorway.

Emotionally scarred? Harry thought. Who the hell was he kidding?

* * *

McGonagall positioned us against a Gryffindor banner hanging from one of the stands. Joe lifted Jordan onto his shoulders as he kept waving the snitch and Sirius roped in Remus with an arm and spun him around while Nymphadora held onto his ankles. Maud ran towards us with a fat smile on his face. He had a long trail of white bandages attached to his head that were waving in the wind like a banner behind him as Pompfrey chased after him. He jumped on Victor, sending him to the ground where he was too busy laughing to get up again so Maud also kept laughing like he had been given too much medication by Pompfrey and hugging the trophy like it was his best friend. James tangled all his fingers in all of mine once more and kissed me soundly on the lips.

There were smiles and flash and then another set of new smiles.

I had to ask McGonagall to make sure that I got a copy eventually.

* * *

Sometime later that evening, after an emergency There-is-a-Mystery-to-be-Solved meeting with Ron and Hermione, Harry attempted to employ a different approach. He heard them whispering and shushing each other as they passed the library where he, Ron, and Hermione were waiting for them to do precisely that. Harry leapt out of his chair and caught them before they continued back into the kitchen. They tensed immediately as they saw him.

"Hey Remus, Sirius," said Harry cordially, as if nothing had happened. The professor and godfather relaxed slightly. "I've got a quick question for you."

"Sure thing," said Remus.

"How did my parents meet?"

Remus and Sirius visibly swallowed.

"They met through Quidditch…?" Remus tried.

"But women weren't allowed to play on the house teams when you were at school," Harry reiterated.

The retired Marauders froze and glanced at each other until another body moved into the room.

"Molly! Biscuits! Thank you!"

She yanked the tray away from them, "These are for the children! You're going to ruin your appetites!"

"We're grown men! We make our own decisions!" Sirius stuck out a tongue and yanked the tray away from the adult woman and took off.

Harry glared at their retreating backs until Jordan suddenly approached him.

"I shouldn't be the one to tell you," he said quietly, "But here," he pulled out a thick piece of glossy parchment from his pocket and offered it to Harry. There was a date on the back. Harry unfolded it and stared at it only to have more questions than answers.

* * *

I only sent him a short letter months later when summer holidays rolled around. The note read simply:

_I'm sorry. _

_Best,  
Lily._

I don't know what I was apologising to Snape for, but it felt right.

* * *

Harry wordlessly sat next to them in the dining room before dinner started...

"Sirius. Remus." said Harry with a more tired and defeated tone of voice as he carefully unfolded the rather peculiar and unexplainable picture from Jordan of the 1976 Hogwarts Quidditch Championship in his hand, "How _exactly_ did my parents meet?" his tone was more than suspicious now as he laid it down on the table, aware that Jordan's shoulders were shaking with supressed laughter. "You both know more than anybody that I deserve to know."

Remus Lupin and Sirius Black, who sat across from their youthful charge in the kitchen, leaned over to look at photo book and cringed slightly.

Mrs. Weasley was nowhere in sight and neither was her cooking.

They were trapped.

"Erm, well, Harry," Remus scratched his head sitting back, defeated, "It's a rather long—"

"—twisted," Sirius added.

"—complicated story,"

"That involves a lot of chocolate,"

Harry grimaced, "This isn't anything potentially embarrassing or awkward that I really don't want to hear…is it?"

"Oh, you have no idea," said Remus.

* * *

"So a chocolate fountain, eh?" I said, smiling devilishly at James.

* * *

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN MY MOTHER WAS A CROSSDRESSER?"

* * *

Apparently the girls' dorms were exactly the same as the boys.

Just much cleaner.

I could actually see the floor; I had been wondering what colour it was for quite some time, actually.

There was some scattering of footfalls coming up the stairs.

"Hey superstar!" said Emma, bounding into the room. Marla and Jo were not far behind. They jumped on my bed.

I groaned, "Be careful. I drank too much butterbeer and I just might explode if you poke me."

Jo poked my stomach out of morbid curiosity and my stomach made strange noise in protest.

"Well that was interesting," said Marla, staring at my stomach, bemused.

Emma shimmied some more space and smiled widely. "So don't you think you should be getting ready for your date with James?" she asked.

I gestured to my desk chair where a pair of jeans and a jumper were lying.

"It'll take me two minutes to get dressed and put on shoes," I said.

"Are those—? Lily! You are not wearing those muddy trainers!" cried Marla. "Emma, get me your red heels. And a skirt. And a top! Lily, this thing has a hole in it!"

"Lies," I muttered into my pillow.

"I have a butterbeer cork necklace if you would like to wear it," Jo offered kindly.

"This is your first real date EVER," Emma said, "And I'll be damned if we don't do it right!"

"_We?_" I laughed.

"Lily," she looked at me as she hooked her hand on her waist, "You need us to make up for the lack of female-ness you've been through this year."

"True," I sat up, mindful of my stuffed stomach. "If I ever have kids," I started, laughing, "I don't think I am ever going to tell them about all this."

"But if you do, be sure to tell them which one of us dressed you for your first official date with James Potter," Marla told her primly, fanning out a black skirt on the bed.

* * *

"So that's how women came to be allowed to play on the house teams?" Harry said tiredly, emotionally beaten.

Over the past hour, people had slowly started to return to the kitchen to listen as Sirius and Remus tried to explain to Harry and the younger generation how Lily met James and how Lily's endeavors had allowed women to play on the house teams at Hogwarts. Those who already knew the story pointedly avoided looking at Harry out of embarrassment or guilt from withholding this information from him.

"Wow Harry," said Ginny, her eyebrows still raised in approval, "You're mum was cool."

"That's awesome, mate," said Ron, his shoulders shaking in laughter.

"I'm pretty sure if you give your Gringott's vault a thorough look, you'll find the quaffle that she threw that game in there. She kind of stole that from the school," Sirius chuckled.

"If Mr. McClain and Mr. Daniels are both in the Order," Hermione motioned to them down the table, "What happened to the rest of the team?" she asked curiously.

Remus thought for a moment but Jordan answered from his seat. "Victor married a Russian woman and lives there with her and their children and Maud works at St. Mungo's. He was able to set up a secret ward to treat members of the Order. You might see him sometime."

"We should have a reunion," Sirius mused, "Gryffindor Quidditch champion team two years in a row."

"Marla was an Unspeakable before she was killed in the first war," said the woman sitting across from Joe. "I'm Emma, by the way," she smiled beautifully at Harry.

"What happened to Charlie?" Fred asked. (George added under his breath to his brother, "_She _sounds like a bird I'd like to know,")

Ron's face was turning red with contained laughter, "I'm still on 'Harry's mother was a cross-dresser' bit,"

Harry kicked him under the table, but it only made Ron laugh harder.

"Charlie and I dated for a while," Sirius sighed, "But then she went on to become a model and last I heard she was in Brazil."

"A Brazilian model," the twins sighed together.

"She dumped _you?_" Harry said, shocked.

Sirius nodded solemnly. "Yes, it was really unexpected—"

"You were _cheating_ on her!" Remus erupted suddenly.

"There was that too," relented Sirius, "But don't think I didn't see you two at the 1980 Christmas party," he said, raising a brow that exuded its own implication.

Now if Remus looked uncomfortable, Harry was decidedly uncomfortable as well.

* * *

"So...this is the happily ever after?" I said.

James shrugged, "I dunno, are you happy?"

"Yeah, I think so," I answered, contemplatively. There was silence between us as we both enjoyed the feeling of the end of the exams and the first warning signs of summer. The willow tree by the lake would quiver in the warm winds occasionally but otherwise stood as a strong form of unyielding support. "If this is the happy ending, it's rather dull, don't you think?" I said, cutting into the silence.

He looked at me funnily. Not implying that he was funny looking, of course, I happened to find that he was rather attractive, "_Well,_" said James, "We've already won the cup, your femininity has been exposed, we're Gryffindor heroes, everyone loves us, and we get to hang out over spring break...most stories usually end right about there,"

"We didn't go riding off into the sunset or whatever," I told him only to receive another _'Are you being serious?'_ look from James. "And no offence, but you're not exactly a Prince Charming, knight in shining armour, sitting his fat arse on a stunningly white horse-type of person,"

"That's because Prince Charming didn't own a Nimbus," he said seriously, "He had a silly white horse that _couldn't_ go from zero to eighty in under four seconds,"

"This is true," I agreed.

James stared at me for another moment. "So what about if we grab our brooms and go riding off into the Quidditch pitch instead?"

I brightened at the idea, "Yeah, sounds good."

**:****-: ****  
****-:FIN:-**


End file.
